Through My Veins
by Harley Godwin
Summary: Luna is a Breton who used to take residence on the outskirts of Bruma in Cyrodiil, but when she found herself caught in an ambush along the border of Skyrim she was sent to Helgen where she first learnt of the ongoing war. After the Companions helped her get back on her feet she dedicates her studies in the College of Winterhold to finding a cure for Lycanthropy...
1. The Block

I could hear the hooves of a horse walking slowly on the cobblestone, a distinct sound I remember from home, along with the horse's loud breath and the ruckus of a cart being pulled along. As I opened my eyes I could see the faint silhouettes of people, one driving the cart the rest of us were seated in.

My head was aching and I couldn't remember anything; I didn't know where I was, or what I was doing here. As my vision became clearer I could see a man sitting across from me with his hands bound. I glanced to the side to see the dark horse pulling us down a path. I couldn't see what lay at the bottom of this hill because there was a thick fog lying across the ground.

I could feel the cold nibbling at my arms and as I looked down and saw my own hands bound, I saw dirty rags that didn't fit me properly on my body and I felt a sudden violation. My body ached and I could see purple and blue marks along my arms as if I had been dropped from the Jerall Mountains.

I looked behind us and I saw a faint shadow of what seemed to be a guard on a horse. I could hear more than just the two horses I was aware of, so I assumed we weren't the only carriage.

'Hey, you, you're finally awake,' said the man sitting across from me. He was a Nord, I knew this from his build and his thick accent. I swallowed hard and looked at him and he inquired if I had tried to cross the border and walked into an ambush, like they had. I had no clue so I nodded slightly, assuming that is what had happened to me. He then addressed the man sitting next to him, calling him a thief.

'Damn you Stormcloaks! Skyrim was fine, until you came along!' he spat at the Nord. I stayed quiet, too afraid to speak to these strangers. I looked to my right and saw a man much better dressed than myself and the other two, although the Nord was wearing chainmail armor with a blue cloak over it and it appeared to look like a uniform of a city guard. I paid no attention to the ramblings of the thief as he cursed the Stormcloaks for being the reason he was caught.

The man sat forward with his elbows resting on his knees, his hands bound too. His face was slightly hidden behind the fur of his clothing; all I could see was his eyes. His dirty blonde hair fell over his eyes and he caught me staring at him, so I looked away quickly but something caught my eye again, he moved back a fraction and I saw he had a gag around his mouth. I stared for a moment before someone addressed me.

'S-sorry?' I said nervously.

'We shouldn't be here!' the thief stated. I looked down at my feet nervously and stared at the foot wrappings. He rambled about the Stormcloaks being the ones the Empire wants. I was too afraid to agree or disagree; I knew nothing of the Stormcloaks or who they were.

The Nord told him we are all brothers and sisters here and I looked at the three sitting around me. None of them were elves, never mind a Breton.

'Shut up back there!' shouted a croaky voice. I looked to the driver, startled. We hit a small bump in the road and I could feel my body ache. I didn't want to listen to the others talking anymore, and I didn't want to be involved in their conversation, for fear the driver would shout again and perhaps do worse, but they continued to talk and I heard someone raise their voice.

'Watch your tongue! You're speaking to Ulfric Stormcloak! The true High King!' said the Nord. The thief identified him as the leader of the rebellion. I sat quietly, confused as to what was going on. I knew nothing of a rebellion or of anyone by the name of Stormcloak, so I suspected that I was no longer in Cyrodiil. I had only ever been to Skyrim when I was moving to Cyrodiil, and it was only for a brief time but I remember Markarth particularly well; my very first time seeing anything Dwemer related. As a child it was a little scary, but thinking back on it now I remember the excitement from my parents.

'Oh gods! Where are they taking us?!' exclaimed the thief, and then my heart began to pound in fear. Where are they taking us?

The Nord then muttered and I heard him saying that Sovngarde awaits them, and I recognised that as where worthy Nords go when they die. I knew death was at the end of this path. The thief began to mutter under his breath, repeating himself, questioning where we were going. I began to feel ill and weak and the thief began to panic even more, exclaiming how we don't belong here and this isn't a fair trial, every few moments repeating that this can't happen to him.

The Nord asked him where he was from, I guessed to try and calm him. I looked to the left, up ahead, the fog was clearing up, but I still felt cold. I could see a village up ahead and then my heart skipped a beat as I heard someone shout.

'General Tullius, Sir! The headsman is waiting!' I swallowed and I couldn't hear anyone anymore. I could faintly hear the thief praying to the gods and the Nord kept his head down. I looked at Ulfric Stormcloak and the rag around his mouth. The braids on each side of his face fell down to cover his eyes, but I could see something dark in his eyes, something incredibly sad.

The cart brought us into the village and the Nord began to speak again, but his voice dripped with poison as he cursed the General. He spat in the cart near his feet and I coiled into myself. The mere mention of elves caught my attention and I tuned in.

'Look at the Thalmor with him, elven scum. I bet they had something to do with this!' he growled. I suddenly felt very conscience of my ears, as they had a slight point from my elven ancestors, but thankfully my hair was covering them. My hair was usually a light shade of blonde, but judging by the dirt on the rest of my body I assumed it didn't look very blonde.

The Nord identified the village as Helgen and then went on about how he loved to come here and how the mead was wonderful. I was too aware of the fact that I was sitting in a cart, about to be put to death in a strange land, with three men, one of which seemed to be slightly racist, the other a thief and the man on my right I could only assume to be someone very sought after if he was really the leader of this rebellion.

I heard a child's voice behind me and I looked back. The child asked his father who the people on the cart were and where were they going. I felt the need to cry because I knew this was it, I was going to die in a public execution and I didn't even know what was going on. As the father ushered his son into his house and the boy whined because he wanted to watch the soldiers but he was told sternly to go inside.

The cart pulled to a stop and the thief began to panic and continuously asked why we were stopping. The Nord looked at me sympathetically.

'Best not keep the gods waiting, eh?' he said to me. We all stood up and the thief began to ramble again, pleading with the Nord and Ulfric to tell the guards that he was innocent. The Nord stood behind me and told him to face his death with some dignity, but he rambled on still.

The thief and Ulfric stood in front of me as an angry woman in Imperial armor ordered us all off the carts. I could recognise the dragon symbol on the chest of each soldier as the Imperial uniform. I looked around and all I could focus on was the headsman standing, waiting.

The woman ordered us to step to the block when they call our name; she shouted and told us to do so one at a time. The Nord behind me made a remark of how the Empire loves their lists. They called Ulfric, and the Nord behind me, but I was too focused on the headsman to even catch his name. They then called the thief and once again he pleaded, telling them he wasn't a rebel.

He sprinted off, running past the guard with the list and the angry woman who intimidated me greatly. His hands still bound, he ran towards where we had come from. The woman yelled for the archers and with one arrow he was shot dead. I felt my knees go weak as I saw the man fall to the ground with an arrow sticking out of his chest. The woman turned to face me and snarled.

'Anyone else feel like running?' she growled. I swallowed hard and I could feel a lump in my throat. The man with the list then told me to step forward. I walked up to the two, feeling small as they were both taller than me, even though growing up as a Breton I was used to being smaller than everyone around me, but this time I felt like I was looking up at the White-Gold Tower. I felt so small, as they dictated my death.

'And who might you be?' he asked me, lowering the list and the quill in his hand.

'I'm L-Lun-'

'Oh please, it doesn't matter, you're next anyway. Step up to the block!' the woman snapped.

'Would you like your remains to be brought back to High Rock?' the man asked. I didn't feel quite as intimidated by him.

'I lived in C-Cyrodiil,' I said, just above a whisper. He nodded kindly and I watched as he wrote something on the list he held. I glanced at the woman and she glared at me, impatiently waiting for me to step to the block. I wanted to tell him where, but I was afraid of the woman who stood beside him.

'Follow the Captain,' he said quietly, continuing to write on the paper. She grabbed hold of my arm and pushed me forward to the block. Her grip on my bruised body made me flinch.

I saw the Imperial General standing in front of Ulfric, his face almost touching Ulfrics. I didn't hear what he said because he was too far away, but I heard Ulfric trying to say something under the gag. But the general just laughed at him and walked away.

I thought my heart was going to break my ribcage as it thumped so fast, I could hear it ringing in my ears. My fingers were numb from the cold, I looked down to them and they were almost a shade of purple. I could feel the dirt stuck to my feet and the cold ground was slightly damp.

Then there was an odd noise echoing, like a roar from some great beast. Everyone looked around, the look of panic on almost everyone's face. Someone asked what it was in a panic, but I was still looking around to notice who said it. The General ordered the executions to continue, disregarding the mystery noise.

Beside the Captain stood a Priestess and when the Captain told her, she began speaking.

'As we commend your souls to Aetherius, blessings of the Eight Divines upon you-'

'For the love of Talos, shut up and let's get this over with!' yelled a man in the same uniform as the Nord in the carriage. He stood up to the block and the Priestess stopped and walked away, looking rather insulted. The man stood in front of the block and the Captain pushed him to his knees. The General stood back, smiling at the man at the block. I looked to Ulfric and he was narrowing his eyes at the General. He looked towards me and I quickly looked away.

'My ancestors are smiling at me, Imperials. Can you say the same?' the man at the block challenged. The Captain didn't answer, she pushed his head to the block and with a swift swing the headsman had the soldiers head disconnected from his body. Someone from behind shouted at the Imperials and then people around began yelling.

'Death to the Stormcloaks!' they shouted. I looked around saw the Stormcloak soldiers look at each other and bow their heads. I watched as the body of the Stormcloak fell to the side and his head sat in a basket. And then the Captain called for me.

'The Breton from Cyrodiil, step forward!' she yelled. I heard her, but I stood still, frozen in fear. I couldn't breathe and I could feel the tears welling up in my eyes.

Then the roaring noise came again, echoing in the distance. The Imperial who had the list spoke.

'There it is again. Did you hear that?' he asked. Everyone looked around, searching for the source of the noise. The Captain snapped at me again and this time I moved forward, slowly walking towards the block. She grabbed my arm roughly and I looked back at Ulfric Stormcloak and he looked sympathetically at me. I almost expected him to do something as he watched an innocent woman walk to her death after being accused of being a member of his rebellion. But what could he do? The Stormcloaks standing behind him all looked at me and watched.

I was pushed down to my knees and I looked up at the headsman holding his axe in his hands. She pushed my head onto the block and I could feel the warm blood of the first man. The headsman moved to hold the axe but I looked behind him at the mountains. From the mountains emerged a huge creature that I have never seen before. It had huge wings and a fierce tail and I knew it had to be a dragon.

'What in Oblivion is that?!' yelled the General. The dragon swooped up into the sky and landed on the tower just in front of me, behind the headsman. The ground shook and the headsman fell down. Before me stood a dragon on a tower in a small village in Skyrim. I lay still on the block, tears filling my eyes, I couldn't breathe and I didn't know whether to run or stay put.

People were yelling 'dragon!' behind me and I could hear the chaos unleashing itself. The dragon stood for a moment, its great black wings enveloping the tower. A blast came from the dragon and the headsman was blasted backwards. An Imperial ran in front of me and was knocked backwards as the second blast came and I felt myself being thrown backwards too.

My vision was blurred and I couldn't hear anything but a ringing in my ears and the faint sounds of screaming and shouting all around me. A Stormcloak grabbed my arm and pulled me along with him into the Keep. I stumbled in the door and it was slammed shut behind me. I could hear the screams outside, from the people and the dragon.

The Stormcloak that had helped me inside turned to face Ulfric Stormcloak who had his hands untied and the gag from his mouth removed.

'Jarl Ulfric! What is that thing?! Could the legends be true…,' he asked, I could hear him panting just as heavily as I was. Ulfric turned to him and looked at me then turned back to him.

'Legends don't burn down villages,' Ulfric replied. Suddenly I realized why there was a gag over his mouth…

'How do we get out of here?' I asked. They looked at me and Ulfric ushered forward.

'Up through the tower, quickly,' he said, climbing the spiral staircase. I followed with the other Stormcloak and ran up the stairs.

The wall came crashing through just as I was about to go forward and I jumped back, falling backwards against the wall, almost tumbling down the staircase. The dragons head appeared in the wall and a blast of fire came from its jaws and down the tower. And then he was gone.

'Jump through the roof! To the inn on the other side! You have to keep going!' yelled the man beside me, 'We'll catch up when we can!' I panicked and looked down at my hands still tied and then jumped from the hole down to the inn that had been burned down. I landed and fell over onto my side and scrambled to my feet and ran through the inn, avoiding the flames as the walls around me burned in the fire. I jumped down through a hole in the floor to the bottom floor and ran out the door where I stumbled and fell to my knees.

I looked up and saw the Imperial with the list, but this time he held a sword in his hands. Then the dragon appeared before him and opened its great jaws to unleash terror again. I rolled to the side and kept my head down in the ground. It took off again and I got to my feet and crouched down and hurried over to the Imperial.

'Come with me, I'll help you!' he yelled over the noise, he beckoned me forward and I ran after him, following him down the path, he yelled and told me to stay close to the wall. I ducked to the wall beside him and then the dragon swooped down onto the wall we were hugging. The front of his wing was inches from my face, the wind from his wings knocked the Imperial forward and the dust blinded me for a moment. Yet another burst of fire was released from the beast and then it flew up again.

The Imperial ran out and I followed. My feet were swollen and hurt, the soles bleeding from running across the stones. I wiped my face with my arm and saw blood; I could feel it dripping down from my forehead along the side of my face. I kept running just behind the Imperial.

Running through a burning building, avoiding the scorching flames that surrounded us we ran towards people shooting flames back up at the dragon as it flew over us, its shadow cast along the village. I looked up and fell down on my knees once again and I could feel the skin on my knee tear back and it stung as the dirt on the ground attacked the wound. The Imperial turned back and reached out his hand to me.

'Come on, give me your hand! I'm getting you out of here!' he said above the noise of the dragon. I held up my hands, still tied together and grabbed his hand and he pulled me up. I limped on my leg and followed him through Helgen, watching as everyone who was able was fighting back against this dragon.

The Imperial stopped in front of me and I looked at him and then to where he was staring. I saw the Nord from the cart standing in front of us.

'Ralof! You traitor!' yelled the Imperial. He went to grab him by the throat but Ralof ducked and threw the Imperial over his shoulders. He landed on the ground in a dusty heap. He stood up quickly and then pointed his sword to Ralofs throat. Ralof didn't move he just stared back at the Imperial.

'I should kill you now,' the Imperial growled at him.

'We're escaping Hadvar. You're not going to stop us this time.' Ralof said sternly.

'Fine! I hope that dragon takes you all to Sovngarde!' Hadvar shouted at him, lowering his weapon. I stood back, looking at the two. I had been on a cart with one and I had only just learned his name, and I had been sentenced to death and saved by the other and I had only learned his name too. The two looked at me and both called for me to follow them as they ran separate ways. I looked from Ralof to Hadvar, I went to run with Ralof, but a soldier ran in front of me and knocked me back and I could no longer see the Stormcloak uniform. I could feel the sting in my knee and I felt like a child crying over a graze. I turned and I could see Hadvar rushing up to me. He took my hand and helped me up again and helped me over to the Keep.

I looked over my shoulder before entering the door and saw the village smouldering as the dragon continued to reign havoc among the people. I was just glad to be with someone who knew how to wield a sword.


	2. Riverwood

We walked into the Keep and I tried not to gag as the wretched smell of damp and blood filled my nose. Outside I could hear the roar of the dragon and I hoped this Keep didn't come tumbling down on top of us. I tried to loosen the binds around my wrist but it only made the rope tear into my skin even more. Hadvar at me and noticed the bounds.

'Let me cut those for you,' he said taking my hands and pulling out a dagger. I looked down at my wrists and became aware of how heavy I was breathing. I tried to even it out as he cut the rope free and I could feel my fingers again.

'What did you say you're name was?' he asked.

'Luna,' I said blandly, even though I had never even gotten around to stating my name.

'What an unfortunate time to meet you,' he said with a sad smile. Besides the fact he was a member of the army that tried to have me killed for no reason whatsoever, he wasn't all that bad. We stood in the barracks room and I could see chests and uncomfortable beds around the room. How could anyone sleep in this?

'Have a look around, there should be some gear you can use,' he said. I nodded and opened the nearest chest to me and found a sword that looked far too heavy for me to carry. I saw some boots and the Imperial uniform. I slipped on the boots over my foot wrappings and heaved the armour over my head and fixed it onto my torso. The armour was heavy and weighing my small frame down. The only thing I was used to lifting was baskets with vegetables and an odd rabbit from the woods. I stood up and saw how large the uniform was on me and swallowed hard. I could feel the pressure on my leg wound and I winced in pain.

'You'd better take that sword too,' he said and pulled down a lever and opened the gate to the next room. I took up the sword and held it with both of my hands and tried to mimic the way he held the sword. I knew how to handle a bow and arrow, but a blade was new.

We walked through the gateway and I half expected the dragon to appear out of nowhere but thankfully nothing happened and we stood facing another closed gate. Hadvar looked at me and pulled the chain and stepped forward into the circular room. I followed and then took a blow to the head as someone's elbow bashed against me.

'Freedom or Sovngarde!' someone yelled. I stumbled back and felt my head spin as two Stormcloak soldiers charged at us. One came right for me with her sword above her head, ready to lash it down on to me. I raised my sword in defence and as her force pushed it down it just missed my head. I swung back at her, stumbling as I did so. And then Hadvars sword pierced through her stomach and went right through her body and out the other side. She gasped and blood began pouring from her mouth. I stood looking at her, horrified, as the sword retracted and she fell to the floor.

'Let me see if I can unlock that door,' Hadvar said, sheathing his weapon and walking towards an iron gate. I stood staring at the body in front of me, panting harder than before. I only looked up when I heard the gate creak open and I quickly followed him through.

'You killed them,' I panted.

'Better them than us,' he told me sternly. I followed down the staircase and as we turned to the next hallway I heard that tormenting sound of the dragons roar and boulders fell down before our eyes, blocking our path. Hadvar pulled me back from being hit and for a second I couldn't hear any noise.

'Now where do we go?' I choked.

'Through this door, quickly,' he said rushing over to a wooden door and ushering me through. I walked into the room and froze as two more Stormcloak soldiers stood staring at me. They dropped the things in their hands, they must have been searching for supplies, and then they charged at me.

I lifted my hand to defend myself and I felt a blast of heat emerge from my palm and as I looked up at the soldiers, both of them were set alight and screamed in agony from the fire before falling to the ground and the flames began to die down. I lowered my hand and looked back at Hadvar in a panic, but he didn't look worried at all.

'Why didn't you say you were a mage?' he said, shaking his head at me and walking past.

'But I-' I gaped. A mage? I'd never used magic in my life.

'Look for some potions or something we can use in those barrels,' he ordered. I hurried past the dead bodies and saw a red bottle on one of the shelves. I picked it up and saw it was a healing potion. I picked up a satchel off the shelf and put it over my head and put the potion into it. Opening one of the barrels I saw two more of the same vials and added them to the pouch carefully to make sure they didn't smash together.

'This way,' Hadvar said and led me through yet another door. We hurried down the staircase and I wondered how far down this Keep went. As we stopped at the bottom of the staircase Hadvar sighed.

'The torture room, I wish we didn't need-'

'Is that the best you can do to us?!' yelled a soldier. I could hear blades clashing and people yelling and blasts of lightning. Before me lay a room full of cells with blood on the floors and a sticky smell of blood, sweat and damp. I could see red uniforms and blue uniforms. Hadvar rushed in to help and within seconds the blue uniforms lay lifeless on the floor.

'You fellows happened along at just the right time. These boys seemed a bit upset at how I've been entertaining their comrades,' said one of the Imperials. I felt my stomach lurch as I realised he was torturing people and seemed so perfectly pleasant about it.

'Don't you even know what's going on? A dragon is attacking Helgen!' Hadvar yelled, storming up to the torturer. The man laughed in Hadvars face.

'A dragon! Please! Don't make up such nonsense,' he laughed. The man walked away from Hadvar and stopped in his tracks and put his hand up to hold his chin as he pondered on a thought for a moment.

'Although, come to think of it I did hear some odd noises coming from over there,' he said. His sickly polite voice made my stomach churn.

'Come with us, we need to get out of here,' Hadvar said.

'You have no authority over me, boy!' the torturer spat back.

'Did you not hear me? I said the Keep was under attack!' Hadvar yelled.

'Forget the old man, I'll come with you,' said the other man. I assumed he was the torturers bodyguard or his assistant.

'Oh sure, why not just take all my things,' the torturer said sarcastically.

'Grab what you can and let's go,' said Hadvar, taking him up on that offer. I didn't take anything. I wanted to leave the room because the smell of death was making me uneasy. We moved down through a narrow hallway and I tried not to look at the prison cells that lined the walls we were walking through. My leg was getting harder to walk on by the minute but I had to keep moving. We hurried through another prison room like the one upstairs and I let out a small yelp as I saw a skeleton in a cage hanging from the ceiling.

'You're not much of a soldier, are you?' scoffed the assistant. I looked away and hurried after Hadvar. I found myself threading on new terrain and noticed the Keep was ending and this was the entrance of a natural cave. The small hill going down wasn't dangerous but the gravel under my feet moved and made me nervous.

'Where in Oblivion are we supposed to go?' the assistant asked with a powerful voice. I heard some footsteps running toward us and I knew they had heard us. I lifted my sword Hadvar did the same.

'Imperial dogs!' yelled a Stormcloak that came running at us. Hadvar easily knocked him to the ground and pierced his chest with his sword. And then we ran out. Hadvar and the assistant spread out as attackers came from every direction.

I dropped my sword in fear as one came running at me, splashing through what looked like an oil spill on the ground. I held up my hands in a weak defence and suddenly I heard a whoosh of flames as the oil and the soldier lit up in hot flames.

'Quickly! This way!' Hadvar yelled as he ran past me and I ran with him. All the walls looked the same and I felt like we were running in a never-ending maze. He came to an abrupt stop and I skidded to a halt. He yanked down a lever and the drawbridge once blocking our path was now our way forward. We ran across and we found ourselves deeper in the cave. We slowed down and he led me up a river that was flowing through. I was light on my feet, trying not to step on slippery rocks. I was used to climbing through forests and streams, but I wasn't used to running through caves to escape a dragon attack with a damaged leg.

We came to an opening and I grabbed Hadvars arm and pulled him down. I put my finger over my lips, indicating to be quiet. He looked at me strangely and I pointed towards a bear lying in the opening. After making it this far the last thing I wanted was to be attacked by a bear. Once he saw what I was pointing at he nodded and we snuck around, silently moving through the cave. We stayed crouching until we were out of earshot of the bear and then I felt my heart beat fast in my chest. I saw the sunlight peeking through the opening of the cave and I sighed with relief and ran through the opening.

I felt the sunlight hit my face and I inhaled the fresh smell of nature and rid myself of the scent of the blood of the people we had slaughtered. That piercing roar of the dragon filled my ears and echoed in the air. I looked up and I saw those horrid wings swoop down.

'Wait! Get down!' Hadvar hissed, grabbing my arm and yanking me down behind a rock. I hissed in pain as my leg began to sting again. His roar faded in the distance and his shadow was out of sight. We paused for a moment before Hadvar stood up and helped me to my feet.

'Looks like he's gone for good this time, but I don't think we should stick around to see of the beast comes back,' he chuckled.

'Where will we go?' I choked.

'We can go to Riverwood, it's the closest town from here. My uncle is the blacksmith there, I'm sure he can help you out,' Hadvar said, 'You should head over to Solitude join the Imperial Legion, we could really use some new recruits.'

'I think I'll just focus on getting cleaned up to be honest,' I said as politely as I could. I had no intentions of joining the Imperials. Not after they tried to kill me and because I saw their torture chamber.

We walked down the pathway that was lined with grass and clay with some plants pushing their way in to the pathway. The greenery made me feel like I was at home. I loved the woods and I loved the freedom of it. As we walked down we came to a cobblestone path that led down the hill to Riverwood. As we stood at the peak of the hill Hadvar stopped and pointed to the left.

'See that ruin up there?'

'Yes?'

'Bleak Falls Barrow. When I was a boy that place always used to give me nightmares,' he said. He continued down the hill. 'Draugr creeping down the mountain to climb in my window at night, that kind of thing. I admit, I still don't much like the look of it.' I didn't say anything as we continued down a bend and I saw three stones standing in an arc at the end of the bend.

'These are the Guardian Stones. Three of the thirteen ancient standing stones that dot Skyrim's landscape,' he explained, 'Go ahead, see for yourself.'

'I'd rather not,' I said quickly. He looked at me and raised an eyebrow.

'Suit yourself,' he said and turned to walk. I walked behind him as we continued down the pathway. The river beside us made me uneasy, what if he decided he didn't want me following him anymore and pushed me in?

Nonsense, if he was going to kill me he would have done so at Helgen.

I jumped at the sound that came from the woods on our right. I knew that sound and usually when I heard it I climbed a tree, but I was with a soldier right now and I couldn't climb up a tree and climb away like I used to when I was at home. Hadvar pulled out his sword and as the wolf jumped down before us he sliced its head off with a clean swipe. Two more jumped down and Hadvar threw me a dagger but I didn't catch it. As I stumbled to pick it up one of the wolves jumped on me and I dived to the ground, despite the searing pain in my leg. I grabbed the dagger and as the wolf landed on me I pushed it up into its stomach and stabbed the beast and pulled the dagger up to its chin as if I were gutting the thing. Its blood spilled on me and I heaved it off with all my might and scrambled to my feet.

'Are you okay?' he asked.

'Peachy,' I replied panting.

'We're almost to Riverwood now, don't worry.'

We continued down the cobblestones and I stayed as close to him as I possibly could. Within a few minutes I could see the village and I began to pick up the pace and Hadvar did the same. I was never happier to see people acting so normal in all my life. I saw a woman sweeping outside of her house and a young boy running through the village.

'Where did you say your uncle would be?' I asked.

'He's right over here,' Hadvar replied. He showed me to the first building beside the river and he greeted his uncle.

'Uncle Alvor, hello!' he said with glee as he walked up to his uncle. The blacksmith was a huge man with blonde hair. He looked as if he could crush my head in his fist.

'Hadvar? What are you doing here? Are you on leave- What happened to you boy?!' he gasped as he saw the cuts on Hadvar and the dirt and blood smeared across his face. 'Are you in some kind of trouble?'

'Uncle, please, keep your voice down. I am fine, but we should go inside, we must talk,' Hadvar said very seriously.

'What's going on? Who is this with you?'

'She's a friend, she's helped me in fact. I'll explain everything inside.'

'Okay, okay, come inside then. I'll have Sigrid fetch you something to eat and you can tell me what happened,' he said, beckoning us into his home. It was warm and cosy in Alvor's house. The table was filled with delicious home cooked meals and the fire was lit, giving a magnificent glow. A little girl stood by the single bed and stared at us as we entered.

'Sigrid! We have company!' Alvor called, his large voice echoing in the small house. I stood beside Hadvar and nervously put my weight on the leg that was not injured. Footsteps came from the basement and a woman emerged from the staircase.

'Hadvar!' she exclaimed when she saw him, 'We've been so worried about you! Sit down! I'll get you something to eat! You must be hungry!' He hugged her nephew and kissed him on the cheek.

'Thank you Sigrid,' he said politely.

'And who is this? Have you come to tell us you're to be married?' she said with a teasing smile. My cheeks flushed red.

'No, no. Luna is a friend,' he laughed.

'I'll cook you two something to eat,' she said.

'Now then boy, sit down and explain this big mystery to me. What are you doing wandering around looking like you've just lost an argument with a cave bear?' Hadvar took a seat at the table and I did the same.

'I don't know where to start. You know I was assigned to General Tullius's guard. We were stopped in Helgen, where we were attacked by a dragon,' he explained grimly.

'A dragon!' his uncle laughed, 'You aren't drunk, are you boy?'

'Hush Alvor! Let him tell his story,' Sigrid said kindly.

'There's not much more to tell. This dragon flew over and just wrecked the place. I don't know if anyone else got out alive, but I have to get back to Solitude to alert them to what's going on. I thought you could help us out. Food, supplies and a place to stay?'

'Of course! Anything you need boy,' Alvor said kindly and then turned to me, 'But we will need your help. The Jarl must be informed if there's a dragon on the loose. Riverwood is defenceless! We'll need the Jarl in Whiterun to send whatever soldiers he can spare. If you could do that for me, I would be in your debt.'

'I can do that,' I said bravely. 'How do I get to Whiterun from here?'

'Cross the river and head north. You'll see it; it's just past the falls. When you get to Whiterun just keep going up and go up to the top of the hill, that's where the Jarl lives. Dragonsreach. But for now you can stay here and get some rest,' Alvor instructed. He stood up and towered above us. 'I'd better get back to work.'

'Hadvar?' said the little girl, 'Did you really see a dragon? Did it have big teeth?' Her mother hushed her and Hadvar smiled at her.

'I'll tell you later cousin, right now I'm going to eat and get some sleep,' he told her. She smiled with disappointment in her eyes and her smile.

Sigrid placed a plate of cooked beef and baked potatoes in front of me and one for Hadvar too. I looked up at her and thanked her and Hadvar did the same. She smiled at both of us and Hadvar began digging in to his meal and after realizing how hungry I was, I did the same.

After eating, I fell asleep on the chair and woke myself up as I jumped from the fright of a nightmare. I was back in Helgen and I was being tormented by that dragon.

'Did you sleep well?' Sigrid asked as she tended to the fire.

'Yes, thank you,' I said nervously.

'Hadvar is gone to Solitude, he left about an hour ago. If you need to you are welcome to stay another night.'

Another night? Had I slept on this chair for a whole night?

I moved my neck and felt the ache and realized the answer was yes, I had slept there all night.

'No, I think I should head to Whiterun and tell the Jarl. Thank you for you hospitality though,' I said, pulling myself to my feet. But I hissed in pain and quickly sat back down on the chair. My leg was still cut.

Sigrid came over to me and lifted the armour up and pulled the boot off my leg to expose the wound. She gasped in horror. I looked down at the wound and saw the dirt clogged up on the gash and felt the pain run through my leg.

'I'll get Alvor,' she said, hurrying out the door. She was not gone a minute before Alvor came through the door and she hurried down the stairs.

'Why didn't you say something girl? This could be infected,' Alvor said, bending down on his knees to look at the wound. Sigrid returned with a bucket and took the kettle off the fire and poured the water into the bucket. She rung a cloth in the boiling water and handed it to Alvor.

'This is going to hurt,' he warned. I gritted my teeth together and he cleaned the wound with the hot water. It began to bleed again and I hissed and gasped in pain.

After what felt like hours Alvor wrapped the wound in a clean cloth. Sigrid gave me a clean dress to wear and showed me the washbasin so I could clean up before I left.

'I don't think you're a warrior, judging by how you have no sword and you can barely walk in that armour, she said, handing me the wet cloth to wash my face.

'I was just in the wrong place at the wrong time,' I said.

'Sometimes that's the best place to be. I wasn't meant to stop in Riverwood when I was moving to Whiterun, but I did and I met Alvor,' she said happily. Lucky for her, she met the love of her life, I on the other hand almost got my head chopped off and then got attacked by a dragon.

'You can keep the dress, it fits you well. I'll give you some food and gold before you go.'

'Oh no, I couldn't possibly take your gold,' I insisted.

'Hush, it's only ten gold, it'll get you a night in the inn in Whiterun. You can ask around for work in the inns. I'm sorry I can't give you more, it's all I have at the minute,' she said.

'Thank you,' I said.

After she filled my pockets with apples and bread and a sweet roll she gave me ten pieces of gold and walked with me until I had to cross the river.

'You can come back here anytime you need, you're more than welcome,' she said.

'Thank you Sigrid,' I said sadly.


	3. Clouded

I walked over the bridge from Riverwood and saw the sky get dark as if it were about to rain. Terrifying broken tree stumps stood taller than me on either side of the pathway. I saw the signpost and it directed me right to Whiterun and I continued down the cobblestone path. I stayed close to the left, hiding beneath the rocks that towered over. The river on my right kept me company; the sound of the water running fast was a comfort.

I followed the bend around and went down the pathway and continued down, down, down. I could see the city of Whiterun then and I began to pick up my pace. I passed a meadery and farmyard with a big mill, spinning slowly, beside its house. The architecture looked just like that of Bruma. There were some guards along the path and a few stared at me, as an outsider I expected it, but none spoke to me. I was glad because they were intimidating.

As I approached the city I saw a carriage with the driver sitting eating an apple. My stomach lurched and I felt myself grow weak and pale as the memories of the last time I was on a carriage came flooding back. I looked away from the direction of the carriage and tried to make it as subtle as I could.

I could hear the horses in the stables moving around and the smell of the hay was a bit of a softening comfort for me. As I continued up the pathway I saw Khajiits in their small camps outside of the city walls. One sat in the doorway of his tent and stared at me as I walked by with squinted eyes. I could hear him purring softly among the noise outside the city walls. I walked through the arch that the Khajiits were not allowed to pass through and walked over a small wooden arch that went over the running stream that came from the city.

The path went up a hill and I was suddenly aware of how high up I was travelling. Heights were not much of a problem for me because I used to climb trees all the time as a child and to present, but after recent events I wasn't too keen on being up at a height with strangers who may or may not want to kill me.

I paid close attention to the light padding my boots made on the wooden drawbridge as I crossed it and saw the gate to the city. I expected to walk through and go about my business, but I should have known under current circumstances something would happen.

'Hold there!' called the guard as he stood in front of me, blocking my path. 'City is closed with the dragons about. Official business only.' His voice was stern and I thought about just leaving for a moment.

'I have news from Helgen about the dragon attack. I need to speak to the Jarl,' I said as bravely as I could, but even I could hear the fear in my voice.

'Fine, but we'll be watching you,' he replied. I felt as if I was the size of a rabbit with how he spoke down to me. He opened the gate for me a small bit and allowed me to pass through.

I was in awe at how beautiful Whiterun was. The browns and cream colours of the houses and the winding paths leading out into the city were like magic. There was something about Whiterun that made me want to never leave here. I headed down the pathway before me, following each slight curve in the path and I saw the marketplace ahead. As I entered it I saw it looked poor, the coverings about the stalls were dirty and tattered and the colours were faded. But the smell of the fresh bread and newly caught game was like home to me.

I missed home.

I went up the steps and before me stood another area with a huge tree in the centre. It was beautiful, but it looked like it was dying. The pale bark was peeling and what little leaves it had left on its sickly thin branches were withered. There were more steps ahead and I knew I had to go up, Alvor had said it was at the top of the hill. Someone was crying out and preaching about how Talos was the future of Skyrim and the future of Tamriel, but I kept my head down in hope he wouldn't call upon me.

I reached the top of the steps and before me stood Dragonsreach and its huge doors. I slipped in through the heavy doors and went up the wooden staircase. The room was lit by candles and a fire in the centre of the room. Long dining tables on either side were overflowing with food and treats. The smells of bread and cooked meat tickled at my senses.

The Jarl was slumped in his throne, looking down at his palace and me. But this did not intimidate me at all, but the dragon skull hanging above him with its mouth open was terrifying to me and reminded me of Helgen. I shuddered and took a deep breath and approached the throne, keeping my mind set on the task at hand and what I had to do for Riverwood.

'What is the meaning of this interruption?' A nasty looking dark elf stood in front of me and glared into my face. 'The Jarl is not receiving visitors!' She awaited my answer.

'I bring news about the dragon attack in Helgen,' I replied. This time I sounded brave.

'That explains why you were allowed in, come along then, the Jarl will want to hear from you directly,' she said. She allowed me follow her up to the throne.

'You were at Helgen? You saw the dragon? With your own eyes?' he questioned eagerly and nervously.

'Yes. I was being sent to the block when it appeared and attacked. It destroyed all of Helgen,' I said.

'You seem upfront about your criminal past,' he said.

'I'm not a criminal, I was taken captive for being at the wrong place at the wrong time,' I blurted. My cheeks flushed red at my own boldness.

'It is not my concern of who the Imperials want to execute,' he stated, 'what I want to know is what happened in Helgen.'

'It destroyed the village, the Stormcloaks and the Imperials were both there, Ulfric was there too but I think he got away. It burnt down the village and flew off towards this direction,' I said.

'I should have known Ulfric would have been mixed up in some part of this,' he said shaking his head. He turned to the man standing to his right. 'What do you think now Proventus? Shall we continue to trust in the strength we have in our walls? Against a dragon?'

'My lord,' the Dunmer interrupted, 'We should send troops to Riverwood at once. It's in the most immediate danger! If that dragon is lurking in the mountains…'

'The Jarl of Falkreath will view that as a provocation! He will assume we are preparing to join Ulfrics side and attack him!' said Proventus.

'Enough!' yelled the Jarl. I jumped at his large voice. 'I will not stand idly by while a dragon burns down my hold and slaughters my people!' He stood to his feet. 'Irileth, send a detachment to Riverwood at once!'

'Yes my Jarl,' said the Dunmer immediately and disappeared. Proventus excused himself and walked away. The Jarl just stared at him as he walked away. He sat back down and slumped himself in his throne again. He looked at me and smiled. 'You have done Whiterun a service, well done. I will not forget this. I have some armour I can give you as a small token of my gratitude. Are you staying in Whiterun?'

'I'm going to get a room at the inn tonight,' I said with a nod.

'I'll have someone deliver it to you for the morning,' he said.

'Thank you,' I said and turned away and left.

I sat alone in the inn, sipping on a tankard of water. I warmed my feet by the fire in the centre of the room while the bard played songs I had never heard before. It was quiet and I was the only one sitting around here, there were two other people sitting at the tables in the back but they didn't speak. I sipped carefully on my water. I had no money left for another night at the inn and the only food I had was the food Sigrid had given me.

The door opened and in marched two men and a woman, the men dressed in heavy armour, their large physiques made me a little worried if a brawl was to take place. I assumed they were twins as they both had the same faces but their hair was slightly different and one looked larger than the other. The woman had fiery red hair and three green stripes painted on her face. The three walked in and sat along the benches, one of the twins beside me, the female across from me and the other twin beside her. The larger men called on the barmaid for four ales and I looked up nervously. I curled my feet under the bench and held my tankard in my hand.

'Are you planning on getting drunk so quickly?' asked the woman teasingly.

'No, I'm being friendly and offering this lady a drink,' he replied, looking at me. I looked up with a worried glare.

'I'm fine thank you,' I said quietly.

'You're new around here,' said the twin sitting beside me. They both had the same raspy, deep voice.

'I'm just passing through,' I said looking down nervously at my water.

'Where are you headed?' asked the woman. The barmaid came down and handed each of us a bottle of ale, which I accepted out of fear.

'I don't know,' I said.

'Joining the Khajiits,' teased the man beside me.

'No, just looking for work,' I replied quickly. I didn't want them to know much about me, but I didn't want them to tease me either.

'You could work for us,' said the large twin.

'Oh please, a new whelp? She'd hardly even be able to carry in all the mead,' laughed the twin beside me.

'I think she could have some hidden talents,' said the redhead, taking a mouthful of the ale. 'Maybe even beat you in a brawl Vilkas.' She winked at me with a cheeky grin.

'I don't fight,' I laughed nervously.

'Then what do you do?' asked the larger twin.

'I avoid fighting,' I said. What did he mean, what do I do if I don't fight?

'You travel but you don't fight? What if you came across bandits, what would you do?' he asked taking a large gulp from his ale.

'I don't know,' I said quietly.

'How do you not-'

'Leave her alone Farkas,' the woman interrupted, rolling her eyes. 'I'm Aela by the way.'

'Luna,' I replied.

'That's Farkas,' she indicated the twin beside her, the larger one. 'And that's Vilkas,' she said, pointing to the twin sitting beside me. 'We're headed North in the morning if you happen to be going that way.'

'Aela!' Vilkas hissed at her. She rolled her eyes at him and looked back to me.

'If you're headed to Dawnstar I think you might need something warmer than that,' Vilkas commented.

'I don't know, I'll probably be leaving early,' I said, trying to pass off the offer.

'We're leaving at dawn, you can come with us,' Aela said kindly, 'We're not going the whole way to Dawnstar though, but most of the journey.'

I took a gulp from the bottle of ale and braced myself. I didn't see myself being able to talk my way out of any situation, never mind a situation where I had to decline three warrior looking Nords of their company on a trip, although Vilkas seemed fine with me not in their company.

'What brought you to Whiterun?' Farkas asked.

Almost being beheaded in Helgen only to have to run for my life from a dragon attack and then having to warn your Jarl about this.

'I was just passing through, I decided to travel,' I said, trying to keep my voice steady, but I heard it shake and I hoped they didn't.

'You don't look dressed for traveling,' Vilkas scoffed.

'I ran into some difficulties,' I murmured, taking a sip from the ale.

'Difficulties? Like what? Not enough Gods left for you elves to outlaw?' Vilkas snorted. I glared up at him.

'I'm a Breton, not a yellow-skinned, egoistic, milk-drinker for your information. But if you want to be a narrow-minded racist that's fine,' I retorted quickly, narrowing my eyes at him. I automatically bit down hard on my lip, looked down at my feet and feared I was going to land myself a fist to the face.

Vilkas almost choked on his drink at my reply and Aela and Farkas looked at me in shock and smirks grew on their faces and they began to laugh. Vilkas shot them a glare and they both tried to contain themselves, but Aela gave me a wink and an encouraging smirk.

'Listen, whelp-'

'You can't call her that,' Farkas interrupted. He got a stern glare from his twin in return, but Farkas continued. 'She's not new blood, she's not in the Companions and she's not looking to be one so you can't really call her that.'

'Farkas has a point,' Aela agreed, smirking devilishly at Vilkas.

'What are the Companions?' I asked. This was the most I've spoken to people in a few years and I was surprising myself at how brave I was getting.

'We're a group of warriors, brothers and sisters in honour and we show up to solve problems, if the coin is good enough,' she explained.

'It's family,' Farkas added. A group of people acting as a family and protecting each other and outsiders. If I could fight that would sound like something I would love to be part of.

After several bottles of ale later I felt ill and I couldn't control myself. The lack of food in my system and the quick drinking of the ale went to my head incredibly fast and I found myself almost puking on the floor of the inn. Farkas helped me outside while Vilkas and Aela stayed inside in the warmth for more drink, even though the barmaid had gone to bed, they left the money behind the counter.

Farkas and I sat outside on the steps of the inn in the dark night. The clouds were covering the moon and few stars were visible. But I was just focused on trying to sober by mind up, even though my drunken state was resisting.

'Lie down,' Farkas said with a shake of his head. He put his large hands on my shoulders and gently guided my body down to lie on my side on the cold step of the inn. I stared blankly at the empty market. The stalls were bare and quiet.

'I've never gotten drunk before,' I muttered, but I think it sounded more like slurred words and mumbles.

'Maybe because you can't handle it well?' Farkas suggested.

'Maybe,' I sighed, 'or maybe I just never had reason.'

'And you have reason now?' he asked. I sat back up and wrapped my arms around myself to shield myself from the cold.

'I have reason, but reason doesn't mean an excuse,' I said. I watched the clouds move slowly across the night sky.

'What's your reason now?'

'I'm scared of dragons,' I said, turning to look at him. He looked at me and then laughed a little.

'Why would you be scared of dragons? You have guards protecting the city,' he laughed, nodding his head toward a guard that was walking through the city with a torch in his hand. 'And the Companions.'

'There were Imperials and Stormcloaks in Helgen too, but they couldn't do anything to stop it. What makes you think a couple of guards can take down a dragon?' I continued to look at him and then he looked back at me for a few moments, and then it clicked in his head.

'You were in Helgen at the attack,' he stated. I nodded and looked back into the marketplace.

'I wouldn't have been if the Empire weren't attacking and looking for excuses to behead anyone they find in their way,' I snorted. I tried to stand up but I ended up wobbling and falling back down onto the hard stone steps. I was used to falling out of trees when I was younger, but I hadn't taken a fall in a while. Nonetheless I didn't really feel the pain. Farkas steadied me as much as he could and cushioned my fall by grabbing my arms too.

'What happened?' he asked.

'I was hunting for game by my house but a pack of wolves showed up and started hunting me. I usually make a break for it through the trees, but I went too far and I couldn't get down or go back without being followed, so I shot them with my arrows from the trees. I got down and realized I was too near the mountains, but there were rabbits and goats around the mountains so I thought I could get some of them. I went up the mountains and ended up being arrested. I got caught in the ambush. I just saw blue and red everywhere. I hadn't been to Bruma in a while so I didn't know anything about the war. I should have just gone home,' I explained with a sigh to finish.

'You were sentenced to death for hunting rabbits in the mountains?' Farkas said. I looked up at him and wondered if that was all he took from the story.

'I guess you could say that,' I smiled.

'And now you're heading to Dawnstar?'

'I guess I am. Although I like Whiterun,' I told him, looking around at the city.

'What's in Dawnstar for you?' he asked. I rested my head on the half sleeve made of fur on his arm. I tried to make myself sober up more, but this was comfortable and my drunken mind was not planning on moving.

'I'm not sure. Maybe I'll get some money and move to Markarth.'

'Why would you move to Markarth?' he laughed. 'It's a horrible city and anywhere around it is filled with the Forsworn!'

'My father loved adventure and studied Dwemer ruins all his life. Maybe I'll follow in his footsteps,' I smiled. I stood up to my feet and stood on the bottom step. I turned around to Farkas and smiled. 'Or maybe I'll follow my mother's footsteps and dabble in magic and make my own potions.' I gave him a wicked smirk and he laughed and shook his head.

'I think you should go to bed if you're going to come with us tomorrow,' he extended a friendly hand to me and I took it. His strong hold was warm and comforting and I didn't want to take my hand from his. His hand was so large compared to mine that it covered my entire hand. I know I'm a Breton and I'm small for a Breton, but he was so big for a Nord, probably one of the biggest I've seen.

He led me back inside and I thanked him, Aela and Vilkas for the ale and their company tonight and apologized for not buying them any ale in return to which Aela and Farkas had no problem with, but Vilkas rolled his eyes and downed the last drop of ale in the bottle. Farkas escorted me to my room and I stood at the door to my room upstairs talking to him for a minute.

'The Jarl is having some armour being sent here for me tomorrow because I told him about the dragon and what happened in Helgen. Do you think I could sell it for some warm clothes?' I asked.

'No doubt. Aela and I can stop by and bring you to Eorlund and you can sell it to him, he'll give you a fair price and you can get something warmer to wear. If there's nothing you can get I'm sure Aela might be willing to give you some of her old things,' he said with a kind smile.

'Thank you Farkas,' I said.

'Goodnight Luna,' he said closing my door and allowing me to go to bed.

There was bread and cheese and some sweet rolls left in my room on the table and I immediately dug in before falling into the warm bed of the inn and sleeping soundly.


	4. Avoid Fort Dunstad

I awoke covered in sweat and the clothes I was already wearing. I took in a deep breath and tried to calm myself, reminding myself I was safe, I was in Whiterun in the inn and Aela, Farkas and Vilkas would be coming to go North with me. I only ended up panicking myself more, realizing I had no money and no plan for when I got to Dawnstar. I had no bow and no arrows, not even a dagger to hunt with and I was depending on getting a fair price for the armour the Jarl was sending to me.

I sat up in the bed and wiped the sweat from my brow. My leg wound was beginning to throb so I pushed down on it to keep pressure on it to help ease the pain.

Someone knocked gently on the door and I stood up and fixed myself before answering. Farkas stood smiling awkwardly at the door with some armour in his hands.

'I think you'll get over one hundred Septims off Eorlund for this,' he said holding up the armour a little.

'Do you think I'll get what I need out of that?' I asked nervously.

'I think you might even have some left over to buy me some ale,' he said with a smirk. 'Aela and Vilkas are going to meet us in Jorrvaskr and then we'll take leave.'

'Jorrvaskr? What's that?' I asked, closing the door behind me and walking down the stairs with Farkas behind me.

'It's where the Companions live,' he said bluntly.

We left the inn and went up the steps to the next plaza where the huge tree stood in the centre. Farkas easily took larger steps than me and I had to almost run to keep up with him. He turned to the right and took a different set of stairs to the one I had previously taken on my visit to the Jarls palace. Before me stood Jorrvaskr, a large building that was long and looked like a ship had been turned upside-down and turned into a hall.

'That's Jorrvaskr,' Farkas said.

'It's beautiful,' I commented.

'The Skyforge is this way,' he said, turning left and leading me towards a stairs where I could see little embers of fire floating up towards the morning sky. A great eagle statue stood perched on the forge, its wings slightly expanded. The hot fires at the bottom reminded me of a Phoenix bird standing at the

'Are you sure the blacksmith will be here?' I asked as I climbed the stairs, finding it difficult to keep in pace with the Companion.

'Eorlund rises early,' he said.

Eorlund sat at the grindstone, sharpening a huge sword that shone in the early morning glow. Farkas greeted him and he stopped his work and greeted Farkas in return.

'This is Luna. She's a traveller and she's looking for some warm clothes,' Farkas explained, 'She has leather armour, boots and bracers from the Jarl to sell for them too.'

'Well, I have some fur bracers and leather boots lined in fur. I know I have some robes they wear in the College lined with fur somewhere around here,' he said. He moved to a chest behind him and pulled out the bracers and boots and passed them back to Farkas. He rummaged through the chest and then pulled out a blue robe that had a beige collar and sleeves.

'Farkas, I don't have any money,' I whispered to him as Eorlund fixed back up his chest, but Farkas didn't reply.

He handed Eorlund the leather armour and Farkas gave me the robes, boots and bracers and a pouch of gold. I looked up at him and shook my head.

'I can't take the gold,' I said.

'First time I've heard someone say they don't need the gold,' Eorlund laughed.

'Thank you Eorlund,' Farkas said, 'Come on, you can change in Jorrvaskr and we can get moving then.'

I looked back at the Skyforge and saw the embers of the forge still rising into the sky and Eorlund continued his work. We walked down the stairs and I was lead into Jorrvaskr and I was amazed at the interior. The hall was draped in red and gold and the tables dotted with silver plates and goblets, covered in food and mead and ale. A roaring fire sat in the middle and I stood in awe at the place.

I followed the Companion down a stairs and through a door to the living quarters. He walked down the long hallway and into a room and I assumed it was his. There was no one else here and I wondered where everyone was.

'You can get changed in here, I'll be outside,' he said and left the room, closing the doors behind him. I looked around the room and saw the bar with tankards and barrels on top of it, sitting messily in a line. A small table was occupied by a woven basket of many bottles of ale. The room felt warm and sticky from the smell of the ale. There was only a single bed in the room so I assumed Farkas didn't have much company down here.

I emptied my pockets and pulled my dress off and let it drop to the floor. I pulled off the boots from Helgen and left them at the foot of the bed with the book beside it. They were men's boots anyway and perhaps someone might find use of them or sell them. The boots were sticky from sweat and stunk of Helgen, but I doubted anyone would notice the smell. The smell in the room was no better; ale, sweat and a strange musty smell of dog.

I pulled the robes over my head and fixed them on myself, careful to mind the wrappings on my leg wound. The fur was soft and warm against my cold skin. I slipped on the boots and let the fur warm my toes. I put one hand through the first bracer and then the second and wiggled my fingers. I picked up my dress and folded it up and opened the door to find Farkas sitting on the floor with his back against the far wall.

'You look like someone from the College,' Farkas said with a slightly disgusted face, standing to his feet.

'The College?'

'Magic folk,' he explained.

'What's wrong with magic?'

'Nothing's right with it,' he said shaking his head and the disgusted look from his face.

I feared my hand would move and a burst of flames would spark out at him as I thought of the times that it did happen. I looked down at my robes to hide the tears welling up in my eyes. I was so afraid.

'What should I do with my dress?' I asked, holding it up slightly.

'Keep it, it looked well on you,' he said.

'I have nowhere to put it,' I replied.

'I can keep it here for you, so you'll have to come back to Whiterun to see me,' he said with a smirk, taking the dress and leaving it on his bed in the room. I noticed his bed had few tankards tucked under it, perhaps to hide the evidence of excessive drinking.

'I was going to come back anyway, but whatever helps you sleep at night,' I teased.

'Aela and Vilkas should be upstairs,' he said.

We met the two waiting for us in the hall and once again I was in awe of the beauty of the place. Perhaps because it reminded me of the colours we had in my home when my parents were alive. Either way, I adored it.

'Are those enchanted?' Aela asked, looking at my robes.

'I don't know,' I said stiffly.

'Huh,' Aela said, examining my robes.

'We have to get going,' Vilkas said, turning and walking out the doors of the hall. The three of us followed him out and we left Whiterun. I looked back at the city and smiled. Whether I would come back for my dress was irrelevant, I was going to come back at some point.

'We'll go up the road with you as far as we can, but we're taking a path up the mountains before Dawnstar,' Aela told me as we walked down the road and Whiterun began to disappear into the distance.

'I could walk with you to Dawnstar,' Farkas suggested.

'You have business with us,' Vilkas snapped.

'Thank you Farkas, I think I'll be okay,' I said with a nervous smile.

'Vilkas is grumpy in the mornings,' Farkas said with a smirk.

'Oh please,' Aela chuckled, 'Vilkas is grumpy at all times. He hasn't been getting quite the attention he's been looking for, if you get my drift.' Vilkas just walked ahead, ignoring the comments of his two Companions.

As we walked for what felt like days, a few hours had passed and it was beginning to get colder and the snow was beginning to form around us. I was feeling cold and weak, despite my thick layer of fur to keep me warm.

'We should stop and eat,' Aela suggested.

'Only for a few moments,' Vilkas said, 'we have to get to the crypt fast.'

'You're going to a crypt?' I asked Farkas as he took a seat in the snow. I crouched down beside him in the snow, not wanting to get my new robes wet in the snow.

'Companion contract,' he explained. He pulled out a loaf of bread and split it in half and handed me half.

'Thank you,' I said.

'I'm still trying to figure out why you're going to Dawnstar. Why not just stay in Whiterun and work in the inn. I'm sure there's something there for you. You could maybe even join the Companions and have Vilkas bully you,' he said with a mouthful of bread.

'I'm not entirely sure the Companion life is right for me,' I smiled.

'We could always use someone for entertainment,' he said lightly.

'Excuse me?' I said, raising my eyebrows. He coughed on the bread in his mouth.

'No! I didn't mean that!' he ushered out, 'I meant like a bard!' I laughed and smiled at him.

'My hidden musical talents will be worth something after all,' I joked.

'You have musical talents?' Farkas asked, genuinely interested.

'No Farkas, it's a joke,' I told him. I ate my bread with a smile and he did the same. Vilkas and Aela stood up and brushed the snow from themselves. Farkas and I did the same and we continued through the snow. Aela and Vilkas marched through with no problems but I found it hard to keep up through the thick snow. Farkas tried to keep a slow pace with me, but he was unaware of how large his footsteps were compared to mine.

'When did you move to Cyrodiil?' he asked me, pausing in the snow for a second until I was standing beside him.

'I was about seven,' I shivered. My teeth were chattering from the Skyrim cold. I knew cold in Bruma, but this was a lot more severe.

'Why did you move?' he asked.

'My parents wanted to move. I don't know why. We travelled around Cyrodiil until my dad decided we should make a home near Bruma. He went to Markarth for research on the Dwemer and then came back. He had some Dwemer invention with him and something happened,' I explained, gritting my teeth as much as I could to stop my teeth from chattering in the cold, 'I don't know what happened, I was too young. But he died.'

'I'm sorry,' Farkas said sincerely. 'What about your mother? Is she alive?'

'No. She died before my father, before we settled near Bruma. She wanted to travel to gather ingredients and experiment with her potions. My father and I were out hunting one day, it was the day I got my first bow, we came back to the camp and she was dead. One of her potions went terribly wrong.'

'I'm sorry,' he said. I smiled at him and he looked down.

'What about you, how did you end up in the Companions?' I asked.

'Vilkas and I were rescued from a group of necromancers by a man called Jergen. He raised us as Companions,' he said.

'Was he your father?' I asked.

'I don't know. I consider him our father, but after he died Kodlak took care of us,' he said, 'Vilkas isn't too keen on talk about Jergen though.'

'Is Vilkas keen on talking about anything?' I smiled.

'This is our path up the mountain,' Aela called to Farkas.

'When will you be back in Whiterun?' he asked me.

'I don't know,' I said, 'maybe a few days from now.'

'I'll hold you to that,' he said with a smile.

'Farkas!' Vilkas called impatiently. He was already beginning to walk up the mountain path.

'Walk along this path and don't let anyone stop you on the way,' Farkas warned. He pulled out a dagger from his belt and handed it to me. 'Keep this in your hand until you get to Dawnstar. There's an abandoned fort not too far from here, stay away from it, keep going that direction.' He pointed straight ahead along the road. The road was enclosed between two large hills of snow on either side, compared to the open road it looked more frightening.

'Safe travels,' I said with a smile.

'You too whelp,' he said ruffling my hair like a child. He walked to his brother and Aela and I waved to the three of them. Aela and Farkas waved back in turn and Vilkas gave a glance over his shoulder to me as they began up the mountain side. I turned to the road Farkas had directed me to and took in a deep breath of the cold air. I turned back to look at them one last time but when I looked they had disappeared.

I kept my head down against the snow that was blowing into my face and moved down the road Farkas had directed me. I was finding it hard to move quickly in the snow and I was afraid of wolves attacking. I had no trees around here to climb and I had no bow to shoot them. I had the dagger from Farkas but I didn't want to get that close to a wolf or worse.

I thought it was just the wind in my ears making noises, but when I saw that filthy, scarred face I knew I should have stopped and hidden in the snow. The bandit grabbed me and spun me around and clasped his hand over my mouth. Another appeared in front of me and I wondered had I been followed through this path?

I kicked and screamed and bit down harshly on the hand that was covering my mouth. The bandit let go of me and I turned my dagger on him, switching back and forth to the two bandits that stood before me.

'Breton,' one of them said to the other. The dark look in their eyes was something I would much rather avoid.

'She'll do just fine,' the other growled. I couldn't see what race they were in the snow, but I felt sick knowing they had been close enough to touch me and know what race I was. I gritted my teeth and held the dagger up as firmly as I could.

I fell to my knees as an arrow lodged itself firmly in my thigh. Another leg wound to slow me down. I cried out in pain and dropped the dagger in front of me and the two bandits made their move, grabbing my arms and dragging me through the snow. I watched as the dagger disappeared into the snow and I wept.

When I saw the fort we were headed towards I saw the mountain that the three Companions had ventured up and out of sheer desperation I began screaming for help in hope that they might hear me. I cried and cried, screaming at the top of my lungs, kicking and pulling away, trying to break the men's grip from my arms so I could try and escape, but it was no use. The new wound in my leg was enough to stop me from even breaking their hold.

They stopped as they approached the gate and another bandit, dressed in heavier armour than the two who caught me, jumped down in front of us and held up my chin and looked at my face.

'She'll do,' he snarled.

'Please,' I sobbed. They dragged me inside, the wet of the snow had now soaked into my boots and my feet were freezing to a point where it hurt to move my toes. They dropped me inside the courtyard of the fort where the snow had been cleared. I groaned and tried to pull the arrow out of my leg while they were talking for a minute. They grabbed my arms again and the arrow snapped in my leg and I screamed in agony as they pulled me into one of the Keeps in the fort. The blood seeped down my legs and into the snow. It was the only thing that was keeping me slightly warm.

I was dropped in a room in the Keep and the men left the room. I propped myself against the wall and cried out from the pain in my leg. I put my hand over it to put pressure on the wound to stop it from bleeding so much. My hands were now soaked in red and my new robes were destroyed in wet from the snow, rips from the bandits and blood from my leg.

The door creaked open quickly and in walked a man dressed in heavy armour and a helmet. He took off his helmet and left it on the desk in the room. He stripped down from his armour to his pants and then pulled them down slightly. I curled into the wall and sobbed gently. I had nothing to defend myself and I knew what was coming next. He grabbed my robes and pulled me to my feet. I squealed in pain and he roughly pulled the robes over my head and I heard them tear. I tried hitting at him but he held my wrists together to stop me. I tried kicking his shins but my leg caused me so much pain I had to lean on the other.

'Please,' I begged, 'Please don't.' He didn't say a word.

He spun me around and pushed me down and held onto my waist to stop me from collapsing over onto the ground. I screamed in pain and in my head I prayed to every God I had neglected since my parents had died.

Once he was finished with me he let me drop to the cold ground and he put his armour back on and left. Then five men entered the room and I cried harder than I had ever cried. I cried more now than I had when I had lost both of my parents.

Once the five of them had humiliated me to their satisfaction by touching every inch of my body with their vile claws and violating me they let me drop to the floor once more. And then they did it again, two of them forcing their way onto me at once while the others grabbed at me and spat vile words at me. Their voices haunted me, echoing over and over again in my head.

They pushed me to the floor on my back and two held my wrists to the ground, clawing at my skin while another forced himself into me and thrust back and forth. I shook my head and screamed in pain and then I screamed louder as he grabbed my wounded leg and hitched it over his shoulder. The pain seared through my entire body.

'Stop!' I screamed. I pulled my arms to try and break free but their grip was too strong. I ground my teeth together and shut my eyes as tight as I could. I screamed in pain and then I felt the flames rush past my cheeks and the bandit stumbled backwards and let my leg drop. I screamed from the pain as my leg hit the stone and then I felt myself fall into unconsciousness.


	5. The Hall of The Vigilant

I woke and found myself wrapped in warm blankets and an oversized red tunic. It reminded me of something like what my father used to wear. I looked around and saw the room was lit with candles and it gave the feel of a temple. The room I was in was small and only contained a chest and a bedside dresser.

'You are awake,' came a soft voice. I looked up and saw a Nord woman at the door dressed in the same robes I used to own before I found myself surrounded by bandits. She wore an amulet of Stendarr around her neck and I saw a kindness in her eyes.

'Where am I?' I asked quietly. My mouth was dry, my throat was croaky.

'You are in the Hall of the Vigilant. I am a Vigilant of Stendarr,' she said, handing me a goblet filled with water.

'Thank you,' I said, taking the goblet in my hand and sipping from it. 'How did I get here? The last thing I remember…'

'My fellow Vigilant and I were walking near Fort Dunstad when we found you lying in the snow. You were close to death but you had a chance. We have been healing you with restoration magic for the past few days. I was getting worried you wouldn't last much longer without food. I'm glad you are finally awake,' she told me.

'You found me in the snow?' I whispered.

'You have been through a terrible ordeal. I know what those men did to you in that fort and so justice has been served and they are dead to pay for their unholy actions,' she said.

'You killed them?' I gaped.

'We had intended on it, but when we arrived back to the fort they had all been slaughtered. I'm not sure what killed them, but I believe they got their justice. Whether or not the thing that killed them all was correct is another matter we will be investigating,' she said. She pulled a bucket of water from under the bed and pulled a cloth from the water. She wrung it out and patted the cloth along my head.

'You may stay here in the Hall of the Vigilant for as long as you wish, but I assume you would prefer to be in company of friends you already know,' she said after a long delay of silence.

'Thank you. I have friends in Whiterun, but I'm not sure they can help me,' I said. I sat up in the bed and hung my legs over the side. My legs no longer hurt and I inspected them for wounds.

'Our restoration magic is exceptional, you should find your wounds will no longer bother you,' she told me.

'Thank you. I am in your debt,' I said with a smile.

'Nonsense. You would repay me for doing my job? We do not do our work for people to repay us, we do our work because Stendarr requires us to,' she told me with a soft smile.

'Thank you again,' I said, 'I feel like I should repay you though. I don't know if many people would rescue someone from the snow like that.'

'I'll get you some robes. We dried off the bracers and boots you were wearing when we found you. I'm afraid all we have are the robes I'm wearing, but they should fit you nicely,' she said and took leave.

She returned with the same robes I had before and my bracers and boots that were warm and soft just like the first time I wore them back in Whiterun.

'We will escort you to Whiterun if that is where you wish to go,' she told me.

'That is most kind of you, but it's a bit of a trip,' I told her.

'Nonsense, we shall be there in a day,' she said sternly. She gave me a bowl of tomato soup and I gulped it down along with an apple and a loaf of bread before we took our leave to make our way to Whiterun. I was clutching my stomach for most of the trip, worried of what Aela, Vilkas and Farkas might say if they saw me back so soon after our departure. I was worrying myself more than I needed to about the issue though. Farkas would have no problem with seeing me again and Aela didn't seem to pass any heed. Vilkas might be a little rude in my company, but I didn't think he would hate seeing me. After all he couldn't stop me from entering the city.

'If you don't mind my asking, how did you get out of there?' the Vigilant asked.

'I don't know,' I said with furrowed eyebrows. 'I think I can use destruction magic. But I've never used it before. It happened when I was in the fort. They took me to the Keep and they had their way. I was crying and screaming and then it just happened. It happened before that too.'

'You are Breton are you not?' she laughed.

'I am, but I have never used magic before. My mother used magic and I remember her teaching me some spells before but I was only a child. I don't even remember what the spells were about!' I said with a half-laugh.

'Magic is in your blood child. If you want to learn to control it and use it you should see about enrolling in the College of Winterhold. I'm sure they'd love a new student who has a natural ability,' she told me.

'The College of Winterhold,' I said, 'Is that where all the magic folk are sent?'

'People who want to learn more go there. Don't let any Nord send you off there to rid of you,' she said with a laughed.

We arrived at Whiterun just before it got dark and I was quite relieved. I didn't want to be still travelling while it was dark out. I never had a fear of the dark before but ever since Helgen I have had nightmares and since my failed trip to Dawnstar I didn't feel comfortable being on the road while attackers had the advantage of hiding in the shadows.

'Where will you go now?' I asked the Vigilant.

'I will venture further and make my way to Riverwood. I have an old friend there I would like to visit,' she told me, 'You should go inside the city and find your friends.' She bid me farewell and disappeared gracefully into the night. I walked through the gates, nodding shyly at the guards as I passed.

As the gate shut behind me I looked up and saw Vilkas standing in front of me. He seemed larger than usual and a lot more intimidating.

'Vilkas,' I said in fright.

'What happened to you?' he demanded.

'I went to Dawnstar,' I said, my voice shaking.

'Farkas insisted on making sure you'd gotten their safely, but you weren't seen coming near Dawnstar. The poor bastard has been worried sick about you. Talos knows why, because I sure don't,' he stated. His sharp tongue made me nervous and I worried about Farkas worrying about me. Could he have known about what happened to me? Should I tell him what happened to me?

'Vilkas you can't tell Farkas,' I told him as sternly as I could.

'Oh he knows,' he told me with a menacing laugh.

'What? What do you mean he knows? What does he know?' I paused, 'What do you know?'

'We took the same path as you and Aela stood on the dagger you dropped in the snow. The place reeked of bandits. Their stench is unbelievable. We went to Fort Dunstad and you weren't there but the chief was very descriptive of what his bandits had done to you when Farkas was giving him a going over,' Vilkas explained. I bowed my head a little and wrapped my arms around myself, hugging my chest. Vilkas noticed my sudden change in stance and I heard him sigh before he put his arms around me and held me into his chest. My forehead was resting against his breastplate, the cool metal touching my skin.

'I'm sorry that happened to you,' he said flatly.

'It's not your fault, you have nothing to be sorry for,' I muttered into the breastplate.

'I know, but that is generally what people say when something horrific like that happens to another person,' he said. I smiled and shook my head, pulling back. He let go and I could see how awkward he looked after that.

'And Farkas knows everything?' I asked.

'Yes.'

'He was the one who killed them,' I stated.

'He didn't do it for fun Luna. They were nothing more than filthy abominations,' he said.

'I know,' I said sadly.

'Come see him, he won't leave his room. He left a few times to look for you along the road and he waited by the gate for a few hours yesterday. He won't eat anything so you had better go and see him before he starves.' Vilkas led me to Jorrvaskr and as we reached the market he gave me an odd look.

'You didn't come here alone,' he stated.

'No,' I replied.

'Who were you with?'

'A Vigilant of Stendarr; they're the ones who found me and took care of me for a few days. One of them walked here with me.'

'That would explain the odd smell from your robes, they're not the ones you got from Eorlund,' he said giving me another odd glance. We walked through the great doors of Jorrvaskr and I planned on heading straight to the living quarters, but Farkas was already hurrying up the stairs from the quarters and into the hall where we stood. He threw his arms around me and lifted me from the ground. He placed me back down gently to my feet and I balanced myself as he pulled away.

'I was worried,' he said plainly. I gave him a smile.

'I was worried too,' I replied.

'What were you worried for?' he asked.

'Take a trip to Riften already,' Aela called from the dining table. I didn't understand what she meant but Vilkas chuckled and Farkas gave her a quick glare.

'Please don't go anywhere for a while,' he said to me. I looked up into his eyes that looked so sad. They were almost as silver as his armour.

'I won't,' I said, a little worried about him.

'I guess I'll be the one asking Kodlak about a spare bed,' Vilkas said dryly as he walked away and disappeared down the stairs.

'I can't stay here,' I said shyly, 'I'm not a Companion.'

'You could join,' Aela suggested.

'No, it's dangerous. You can stay here and work around Jorrvaskr for a while. It's safe here,' Farkas said, nodding his head in agreement with his own statement.

I guess now is not the time to tell him that I wanted to go to the College of Winterhold…

'I told Kodlak what happened,' Vilkas said, entering the room he shared with his brother.

'And?'

'There's a bed in the room where the new bloods sleep, so you can stay there,' he told me.

'Thank you Vilkas,' I said to him, 'I still don't think I should stay here Farkas.'

'Good luck telling Kodlak you're going to stay somewhere else even though you have nowhere else to go and you have no money to stay in the inn,' Vilkas scoffed.

'Luna, just stay one night at least,' Farkas pleaded with me.

'If I say yes we're going to have the same conversation tomorrow and you will say that exact line again,' I sighed.

'So you'll stay?' Farkas asked. I looked up at him, smiled and shook my head.

'I suppose I'll have to.' He smiled at me and stood up from the bed and told me he'd be back with some food.

'Vilkas I need help,' I said quickly. Vilkas shut the door and glared at me.

'And it has to be my help?'

'Please,' I begged, 'I'm going to travel to the College of Winterhold soon. I want to know if they can help me. I'm just worried your brother isn't going to let me go.'

'You're going to the College for help?' he inquired. I knew I wouldn't get away without having to explain to him.

'It only happened for the first time at Helgen, twice. Then it happened again when I…,' I swallowed back the lump in my throat and held in the tears, 'The Vigilant I came here with told me I had a natural magic ability. I want to learn more.'

'And you need my help to do what? Run away from Farkas?' he raised an eyebrow at me.

'No, no! I just want him to let me go when I have to. I think he's wonderful, and I care for him, but I think he worries too much. He has a very kind heart. You two and Aela are the only real friends I've had,' I explained. Vilkas looked taken aback by this; he had a surprised look slapped across his face. He shook it off and smiled at me weakly.

'I can't stay here Vilkas,' I told him, 'I'm not a Companion and I don't want to join.'

'But you will,' he stated. I looked at him oddly. 'Then you'll be able to stay with Farkas.' He gave me a smirk. I rolled my eyes.

'I'm going to the College of Winterhold,' I told him sternly. He snorted.

'By the Gods, do anything other than that,' he sighed, rubbing his face with his both of his hands.

'I know Nords don't care for magic, but it means a lot to me and I hope you can respect that. I respect your choice to wield a sword,' I said, holding my voice as strong as I could.

'We're headed North in a few weeks. Tell Farkas before that. We'll bring you to the College. In the meantime, if anyone around here asks, you're new blood. If anyone in Whiterun asks, you're part of the Companions now. Can you hunt?'

'With a bow,' I said shrugging my shoulders.

'Good, there's a spare upstairs. Get some leather tomorrow and Eorlund will make you some armour. You're going to need more than some robes to protect yourself.' Vilkas stood up. 'Eat and Farkas will show you to your bed when you've finished.' He walked out of Farkas' room and into his own room across the hall.

Farkas then returned with a platter filled with meat and baked potatoes. The smell was delicious and my stomach started to grumble. He placed the platter on the bar in his room and handed me a leg of rabbit. I thanked him and he began devouring the meat on the platter. I finished my rabbit leg and ate two baked potatoes.

'Do you hunt?' I asked him.

'No,' he said.

'Why not?'

'I usually make too much noise. Aela tried to teach me but I messed up all her hunts,' he said, taking a chunk of venison.

'I can teach you,' I offered, 'If you teach me to hold a sword.'

'Deal.'

When he finished off the platter and threw all the bones onto the silver he showed me down the hall to my room.

'You'll be in the room with the whelps. If you need anything you know where I am,' he said. He opened the door and I walked into the room. There were people in the room and I felt a little nervous at being the newest member, even though I wasn't even a member.

'Just fall anywhere,' Farkas said before giving me a smile and closing the door. I went to the left of the room and sat on one of the beds.

'That's my bed,' demanded a Nordic woman. She wore her helmet and two red stripes on each cheek. I stood up and apologized and sat on the bed across from hers.

'That's also mine,' she said.

'Leave her alone Njada,' said an Imperial woman lying on her bed beside me.

'Whelps have to learn their place,' the Nord snapped.

'I was under the impression we're all whelps here,' I said. My voice didn't shake, but my heart pounded against my ribcage.

'Shut it Breton,' the Nord spat at me. I stood to my feet.

'I was also under the impression the Companions was a family. Being a racist is not very family-friendly,' I told her sternly, 'I'm going to bed.' I lay down on the bed and turned in to the wall and shut my eyes.

This was just great, I was stuck in Jorrvaskr having people believe I was part of Companions even though I can't even lift a sword, I was sharing a room with a woman who clearly didn't want me there, and everyone was giving me vibes that they assumed that I was in love with Farkas or something. Not to mention that I had to tell him I was leaving for the College of Winterhold…


	6. Hunting Trip

'Wake up!' I opened my eyes and the Imperial and Nord women were standing above me. The Imperial looked concerned, while the Nord looked like she was extremely angry with me.

'Are you okay?' the Imperial asked.

'I think I'm going to be sick,' I gasped, throwing myself out of the bed and running out the door. I heard someone call after me but I just continued running. I hurried out of Jorrvaskr through the back door and collapsed to my knees and began coughing and spluttering in the cold air. I pulled myself up onto one of the benches and put my head between my knees.

When I gathered myself I wiped the sweat from my brow and caught my breath. I thought back to my dream. Those horrid wings almost touching my face, those hands grabbing at my body. The pain and then the cold in the snow.

I wanted to go home. I wanted my hunting bow and my own clothes. I wondered was my mother's ring still in my house and were my other belongings still there. Had my house been raided since I was gone or did people even know it was there? I wouldn't be able to get home until the war was over though. Crossing the border from Skyrim to Cyrodiil was too risky. And considering what happened at that bandit fort, I wasn't in a hurry to go running through desolate places by myself.

I walked up to the wall of the city at the back of Jorrvaskr and used the targets for help, kicking off the shoulder of the target to climb to the top of the wall. I put my back against the pillar and let both of my legs hang on either side of the wall. I inhaled the cold air even though it sent me into a fit of shaking, I didn't mind it. I looked up at the sky and saw it was clear tonight. Masser and Secunda were visible tonight too. I feared the sight of a dragon appearing in the sky and I waited for this to happen, but thankfully it didn't.

I closed my eyes, but I didn't sleep. I waited for the rest of the night, every so often looking to see when the sun would be rising. Spotting a few Luna Moths outside the city made me smile.

I looked to the sky, it was close to dawn now and I expected some people would be getting up soon. I heard a creaking noise and turned my head towards Jorrvaskr and saw the Imperial and the Nord from my room walk out to the courtyard. The Nord stormed up to the wall I was resting on.

'You think you can just disappear all night after something like that?' she called to me.

'Njada leave her!' called the Imperial.

'Stay out of this new blood!' she hissed at the Imperial. She glared up at me. 'I don't care for your relationship with Farkas and Vilkas. You can only get so far in this by being their courtesan! ' I looked down at her but I would not move.

'Farkas and Vilkas are my friends, nothing more, but if you want to be jealous then go ahead,' I told her, turning my head to look at the outside of the city.

'Prove to me you're here because you're worthy then!' she challenged.

'I don't have to prove myself to you,' I called, still staring into the distance. I could see the trees in the distance and I imagined myself climbing one and running from branch to branch.

'Njada, Vilkas is here,' the Imperial woman hissed to the Nord.

'No, but you do have to prove yourself to him,' she snickered. I turned my head and saw Vilkas walking down into the training court. He held a bow and a quiver full of arrows. Njada and the Imperial girl walked over to the targets and drew their weapons and began practicing.

'Are you going to stay up there all day too?' he asked, crossing his arms across his chest. Did he know I stayed out here all night? I swung my leg to inside the walls and jumped down from the wall, kicking off the shoulder of the target and landing on the ground.

'When did you say you were heading North?'

'A few weeks. Right now you're doing standard protocol, just like everyone else did,' he said, tossing me the quiver and the bow. I swung the quiver over my head and onto my back.

'I thought we were going hunting?' I whispered.

'You are. After this,' he said, 'Show me what you've got. I can take it.'

'What?'

'Hit me,' he ordered, pulling out his sword and pointing it at me. I pulled an arrow from the quiver and lamely shot at his chest. It bounced against his breastplate and I looked up at him and frowned. He pulled out his sword and swung at me. I stumbled backwards quickly to avoid being hit and looked at him in shock.

Njada began laughing in her stance at my shock.

I ran at the target she was practicing at and pulled myself to the top of the wall, using her target as a stepping stone by kicking off it in one swift movement. I stood on top of the wall, pulled an arrow from the quiver again and shot an arrow at Vilkas, purposely missing his ear. I instinctively pulled another arrow and aimed at him again. He looked back at the arrow that was now sticking up from the ground and then to me.

'Not bad,' he commented, sounding quite surprised himself. I jumped down from the wall and he snapped the bow from my hands. 'Remind me not to give you one of these again though,' he said. I handed him back the quiver and bowed my head slightly before walking into the hall.

I could feel my heart pounding in my chest, bashing against my ribcage, ready to explode. I should have told Farkas I could use a bow before I ventured towards Dawnstar on my own. If I had a bow I could have stopped myself from falling into that situation. I should have told someone and then maybe it would have never even happened. I knew I could use a bow like that, but Vilkas and Farkas didn't. If I told them before, I could have had that spare bow, saved myself and I could be in Dawnstar right now. But would I really want to be in Dawnstar?

Was I meant to be raped by bandits? Was this supposed to happen to me? Could I have stopped it? Was I supposed to stop it?

I was stupid and it was my own fault for going through there alone. It was a stupid idea and it was my fault. It was all my fault.

I slammed straight into Farkas and stumbled backwards. I looked up at him and tried to steady myself. I then realized I was shaking with fear. I could feel the cold paleness on my face and I hoped Farkas didn't notice.

'Did Vilkas see you?' he asked, unaware of my trembling body.

'Yes,' I whispered. I put my head down and walked past, into the hall. I hurried down the stairs, taking two steps at a time and through the doors into the hallway of the living quarters. A strong hand grabbed my arm and spun me around.

'You said you could hunt, you didn't say you could stick an arrow in someone's head if you wanted to,' Vilkas growled. He released my arm roughly and stared down at me.

'I'm sorry,' I squeaked.

'And you want to go to the College?' he growled through gritted teeth. 'You want to throw away that for magic?'

'I hunt for food, I don't kill people,' I told him as sternly. He grabbed my wrist and pulled me down the lengthy corridor and ushered me into his room.

'If you leave Farkas for a College-'

'I'm not leaving him for a College,' I said sternly.

'You're going to attend the College and you're never going to come back. I don't care if you're here or not Luna, but Farkas does,' he told me.

'Why would he care so much?'

'You have no idea how much it bothered him when he knew what those bandits did to you,' he told me.

'But why?'

'Talos knows,' he said rolling his eyes. He paused and looked up. 'Wait here,' he ordered, walking out the door. I sighed and looked around the room.

There was some Chaurus eggs in a bowl, a book shelf and some potions sitting on a shelf. I didn't recognize the potions because my mother always used empty wine bottles and put her own labels on them. I walked over to the book shelf to inspect his choice of reading. I slid out a book that sat under a smaller book and a pair of ice wraith teeth. My mother used to collect the Chaurus eggs and the ice wraith teeth so I recognized them.

I opened the book and read the title; Lycanthropic Legends of Skyrim. I had heard my parents talk of Lycanthropy when I was younger. Mother was obsessive of finding a "cure in a bottle" for it and father suggested a potion to contain it each night. I never heard much of their conversations about it but my father did tell me of an encounter he had with a werewolf or a "lycanthrope sufferer" as he called it.

'What are you doing?' snapped Vilkas. I dropped the book to the floor with a jump.

'Sorry, I was curious,' I blurted. He snatched the book from the floor and tucked it away in his bookshelf and sent me a nasty looking glare. He pulled out his sword and my heart began to pound in my chest.

'Take this to the Eorlund in the Skyforge for me to be sharpened. Be careful with it, it's probably worth more than you,' he warned, handing me the sword. I gripped it with both hands and tried not to let it fall to the ground. 'Go. Now!'

I left the room and hurried up the stairs and through the hall, huffing and puffing, trying to carry Vilkas' sword. I climbed the stairs to the Skyforge and dragged myself to Eorlund who was smelting something in the forge.

'Vilkas. Wanted you to. Sharpen his sword,' I panted, 'Please.'

Eorlund took the sword from my hands in one of his and stared at me for a moment.

'You must be the new whelp then,' he commented. 'Were you not here with Farkas a few days ago?'

'I was,' I said weakly.

'And now you're running errands for Vilkas,' he chuckled, his silver beard shaking in the morning sun. 'Don't always do what they tell you. You may be new blood, but no one is in charge in the Companions. No one is in charge. Every man is his own and every woman her own.'

'Are you a Companion?' I asked.

'No. But none of them can work a forge properly so I am honoured to work for them,' he told me. 'I'll have Vilkas' sword ready in an hour.' I nodded and turned to leave. 'Actually, could I ask a favour of you?'

'Of course,' I said nervously. He lifted a shield from behind his grindstone and held it in his hands.

'Could you bring this to Aela for me? My wife is in mourning and I would like to get back to her as soon as I can,' he explained.

'Of course. Is your wife okay?' I asked, accepting the shield in both of my hands.

'She will be fine. She is worried for our son. It is no worry,' he said. I nodded my head and left the Skyforge. The shield was a lot easier to carry than Vilkas' sword. I entered Jorrvaskr again and hurried down to the living quarters. I looked around for a few minutes before discovering Aela's room. I knocked and entered on her approval and saw her sitting at a small table talking with a man.

'Eorlund asked me to bring this to you,' I told her, setting her shield down beside her, leaning it against the leg of her chair.

'Thank you Luna,' she said with a kind smile.

'You're the new blood,' the man commented.

'Ah yes, Skjor, this is Luna. Luna this is Skjor,' Aela said. Skjor extended his hand and I shook it.

'Pleasure to meet you, Sir,' I said with a nervous smile.

'I saw you with Vilkas in the training yard,' he informed me.

'Ah yes,' Aela laughed, 'Ria said you gave quite the show.'

'Indeed you did,' Skjor said, folding his arms across his chest.

'I knew you could handle Vilkas in a fight,' she said with a wink.

'It wasn't really a fight,' I said with a small voice.

'Don't be modest,' laughed Skjor, 'She could have put that arrow through his eye. Almost did too.'

'I believe Farkas said something about you teaching him to hunt?' Aela inquired.

'Um…Yes. I told him I'd help,' I said.

'Good luck. Ice brains has trouble keeping quiet when hunting. I don't mean talking, I mean he makes a lot of his noise, what with his armour and his inability to hide in bushes,' Aela laughed.

'Good thing we have food here then,' I laughed nervously.

'Aela, have you seen L-' Farkas stopped at Aelas door when he spotted me. 'Oh. There you are. Vilkas said you're going hunting now.'

'I guess I am,' I told him.

'Vilkas left a bow and some arrows upstairs,' Farkas told me. I nodded and said my goodbyes to Aela and Skjor.

'I don't know the woods around here,' I told him.

'I don't know them too,' Farkas replied.

'I guess we can try the pine woods near Riverwood,' I suggested. He agreed and we left Jorrvaskr after collecting my bow and arrows.

'What's wrong with the tree?' I asked him.

'It's the Gildergreen,' he told me. 'I don't know much about it, but folks say it's dying.' I looked up at the pale bark that was peeling from the trunk. Farkas continued walking. We walked through the market and out of Whiterun. I didn't need to look back at it this time. I was going back this time and I knew it.

'I was thinking of taking a trip to Winterhold in a few weeks,' I told him as we walked down the road.

'Why? Don't you like it here?'

'I do. But I don't think the Companion life is quite for me,' I said as sweetly as I could.

'You gave Vilkas quite a showing this morning,' he stated. I got the feeling he wasn't as brainless as everyone thought.

'I don't think the Companions life is something I want to do Farkas.' He stopped in his tracks and looked at me oddly.

'So why would you go to Winterhold?'

'The College is there,' I explained.

'You want to learn magic?' he gaped. He stared blankly at me.

'Well… Maybe. I mean I'm able to use magic. Not very well, but I'm able and I want to learn to control it,' I told him.

'You can do that here.'

'Farkas,' I said sternly, 'I'm going to the college to study. I know you worry and I know you just want me to be safe, but I can't stay running errands in Jorrvaskr for the rest of my life.'

'You could get your own place in Whiterun. You can do magic there,' he said with a hopeful smile. He continued walking and I had to continue with him.

'I can come visit every few weeks,' I told him. He stopped again and I turned to look at him.

'Luna, the roads aren't safe. Especially up North,' he warned.

'I know that Farkas,' I said quietly looking down at my feet. My boots were getting dirty from the dusty road and I focused on that and avoided the memories that came flooding back into my head.

Farkas' head snapped up and he began looking around frantically.

'What?' I asked worriedly, 'What is it? What's wrong?'

'Vampires,' he growled. I looked around, following Farkas' line of vision. In the distance I could see four figures marching toward us. I didn't know how he knew they were vampires from so far away.

'Stay behind me,' he warned and he pulled me gently behind him, tugging me along the road as we walked.

'You there!' came a proper voice. I tensed behind Farkas, but he continued to walk and so I continued to walk behind him, staying as close as I could to him. I knew my bow was secured around my chest and I could rip it off easily if needed, but I was scared.

'Luna,' he hissed under his breath, 'Get behind that rock and stay down until I tell you otherwise.' I stood back as he took the greatsword from his back and held it up. I ran behind the rock and pulled the bow off my back and swiped an arrow from my quiver. I held it down, tucking my legs into my chest, but ready to aim and fire if needed.

I felt the rock shake and I jumped. The grunt from the receiver of that knock sounded like Farkas. I told myself to jump from the rock and help him, but I was frozen. The vicious noise that came next had me shaking so badly, the arrow was making a racket against the bow. I couldn't contain the violent shaking that my body was now locked into.

Within a few seconds I heard a cry from an unfamiliar voice. One vampire. Another let out a scream. With both cries from the vampire, I could hear a strong growling roar from something else. Something beastly. And then the third was dead.

The last vampire fell in front of me with huge scratches along its arm. It hissed and lunged toward me and I held up my bow, hands shaking, pulled back the arrow and released it and pulled another from my quiver. The creature pounced in front of me, behind the vampire and I released the arrow and shot it in the shoulder, but it barely noticed. It looked up and grabbed the undead in its huge claws. It opened the vampire with its strong jaws and the vampire screamed in pain before it was silenced for good.

The great grey beast looked up, its muzzle destroyed in blood, its claws dripping. It looked away from me and jumped above the rock I was hiding under. I dropped my bow and held my hands to cover my mouth to stop myself from screaming. I still couldn't help myself from shaking uncontrollably.

'Farkas,' I whispered with a shaky voice. 'Farkas,' I said a little louder, pulling myself up from behind the rock. I stumbled out from behind the rock and saw Farkas on his hands and knees, stark naked on the road with an arrow in his shoulder.

'Oh Divines,' I gasped, 'It was you.'

'I didn't want you to see this,' he said quietly. I walked up to him slowly, extending a shaking hand to him and gently touching his back.

'I'm sorry. I wouldn't have shot if I had…'

He grabbed the arrow and with a swift move pulled it from his shoulder and dropped it on the road. I kept my trembling hand on his back. It was hot with sweat and blood.

'Don't tell Vilkas,' he said, barely above a whisper.

'How did you…'

'In the Companions is The Circle. Few join. You join and you become…' He stopped and put his head down and stood to his feet. He stretched his shoulder in a circular motion and silently gathered his armour, pulling it over his bare skin.

'You don't want to be?' I asked.

'No. Usually I can contain it but since we left you for Dawnstar it's been getting hard to control,' he said sadly.

'I'm sorry,' I told him.

'It was my choice, I took the beastblood. It's not your burden.'

'What if there was a cure,' I suggested. He stopped, half crouched in an attempt to pick up his sword. He stared at me and I swallowed hard.

'There is no cure,' he said, picking up his greatsword and placing it on his back.

'I could make one,' I told him.

'You can't make one if there is none,' he told me, 'Even I know that.'

'Farkas, I mean I could create a cure,' I explained.

'I think we should just go home,' he said, taking leave back to Whiterun. I followed him home, walking a few steps behind him, neither of us saying a word. Once we reached Jorrvaskr he stormed down to his room and Vilkas stood in front of me, staring at me in the hall.

'What happened?' he asked.

'I don't know,' I whispered.


	7. The College of Winterhold

Days past and Farkas avoided my company while Ria and Njada were muttering things about me every time I passed them. I slept in the room with the other whelps and woke them every night with my screaming. They were getting impatient with me and I was avoiding them during the day. Vilkas would send me on some errands around Jorrvaskr to keep me busy. Simple things such as bringing weapons to Eorlund, cleaning their boots and setting up the targets each time someone knocked it over. I didn't mind, it kept me occupied, but I was getting a little tired of working here for the Companions, playing servant to Vilkas.

'Vilkas, I'm leaving for Winterhold soon,' I told him after I set up the target for him again.

'I thought you might tell me that soon,' he said as he sheathed his sword.

'I don't think Farkas wants to see me,' I whispered.

'He told me what happened,' he said, placing his arms across his chest. I took a small step backwards. Would I be in trouble for knowing the secret of the Companions?

'He told me you want to make him a cure,' he scoffed.

'Yes,' I said in a small voice.

'There's no cure,' he told me and turned towards Jorrvaskr. I hurried up beside him.

'That's why I want to create one. My mother believed it was possible and so do I,' I told him as bravely as I could muster.

'You can't solve a problem with magic.'

'Just because you're a Nord who doesn't trust magic folk does not mean you should force your belief onto others, Vilkas,' I spat. He stopped in his tracks, turned slowly and gave me a glare. 'You're a true Nord and I know you are hurt by the Thalmor outlawing Talos worship. That's how I feel when you speak ill of magic. You trust me on some level, and you know Farkas does too. You don't want me to go to the College because then you'll be expected not to trust me.' He said nothing he just walked through the hall and down to the living quarters.

I stood for a few passing moments before ducking my head and walking down the stairs. I decided to go and try to speak to Farkas, knocking lightly on his door I expected him to tell me to go away, but there was no answer. I knocked again, harder this time, but still no answer.

'Farkas?' I knocked again. I opened the door slightly and peeked my head through the door and looked around to see him sitting on the floor with his back against the bar, his head slumped back with his eyes closed and his mouth wide open. He surrounded himself with empty bottles of ale and wine and a tankard falling from his hand. I entered the room and gently shut the door.

I sat on the floor beside him, pushing the bottles out of the way. I took the tankard from his hand and sat it beside us. I took his hand in mine as he slept and closed my eyes to join him.

I felt him tense beside me and groan as he moved his head. I kept my eyes closed for a minute, keeping my hand in his.

'Do you still want to go to Winterhold?' he whispered.

'Yes,' I said, my eyes still closed lightly.

'Will you come back?'

'Of course.' I opened my eyes and turned my head to him. I gave him a small smile and he nodded.

'Can we try the hunting thing again before you go?'

'Of course,' I laughed.

We stood in the training court, Farkas holding a bow, trying to mimic how I held it. So far he could hit the target, but he couldn't hit the red circle on the target.

'Hold your breath,' I told him, 'Then release.' I lowered his elbow gently and held my hand over his to relax his grip. He released the arrow and this time hit close to the red target.

'Better,' I said encouragingly.

'Good thing you can hold a sword,' Vilkas teased. 'Pity Luna can't.' He picked up and apple from a bowl as he walked out towards the courtyard and took a large bite from it. I held my bow and loaded an arrow silently. I released and snatched the apple from his hand and pinned it to the wooden post behind him.

'Pity your reflexes are rusted Vilkas,' I said with a sickening smile.

'Careful, or you'll be scrubbing boots again before you leave,' he warned.

Farkas put the bow down and handed me a sword identical to Vilkas' and showed me how to hold it upright. I struggled with it, a lot more than he had struggled with archery. He told me to hit the target with the sword and as I swung I stumbled lightly but regained my balance as the sword lodged itself into the target.

'You need better posture,' Vilkas called at me, barely even glancing up from his book that he was deeply immersed in. I straightened my back and took another swing for the target, managing to keep my balance this time.

After a while of training with Farkas I realized I hated using swords…

Farkas had frightened the fourth rabbit and failed at shooting it in time before it disappeared into the bushes. He was getting impatient with his failures.

'Why don't we try deer? They're larger and easier to shoot,' I said. He nodded and we walked back towards a clearing near Whiterun. Once we spotted a deer I told him to stay quiet and stay down. He was doing well at staying quiet so far. I hoped it stayed that way so that we could bring back something to Jorrvaskr to show for our hunting trip, and to stop Vilkas teasing his brother.

'Ready your arrow slowly,' I told him. He did as I instructed, moving incredibly slowly with a small smile on his face. He was hopeful. I told him to shoot and he did and missed the deer. It was startled by the sudden arrow and began to run away. I stood up and watched it run into the distance. I could shoot it in the back of the head and land us with something to show but I didn't want to embarrass Farkas so I left it be. Farkas stood up and looked at me a little disappointed by his poor attempt.

'Do you want to try again?' I offered.

'Yes,' he said.

'I think you just need to work on your aim,' I said. We walked up for another few minutes before we saw an elk and I pulled Farkas to the ground to hide in the tall grass. The elk was feeding on the grass with its huge antlers moving up and down as it moved. I nodded to him and he slowly pulled back an arrow, ready to release it. He focused hard on his aim this time, persistent on getting it right.

He released the arrow on my instruction and pierced the deer in the neck. It fell to the ground as it bled and died.

'Yes!' he hissed in victory. I smiled at him and he swooped me up into a hug. He was like a giant grizzly bear, only he wouldn't tear my head off and eat me. He was an overgrown dog.

'You did it!' I congratulated him and we hurried up to the elk to bring it back to Whiterun.

'Will you carry the bows and the arrow holder…thing,' he asked, handing me the quiver.

'What parts are we taking?' I asked.

'All of it,' he said, grabbing the antlers of the elk and dragging it onto his back, holding it up by the antlers and allowing the rest of the body to drag along the ground.

'All of it?!' I asked.

'Yeah. We use everything,' he said.

'What could you possibly need of the head and the antlers and the hide?' I asked, placing my hand on my hip.

'Sell it to people who want it,' he said, 'Come on before we miss food.'

'If you say so,' I said.

He dragged the elk the whole way back to the city of Whiterun with no struggle. He was incredibly strong and powerful and I felt weaker than I normally did compared to the Companions, although I knew Vilkas, Njada and Ria didn't even come close to matching Farkas' strength, he was twice Vilkas' size.

'Whoa!' Vilkas gasped, dropping his book onto the floor of the back of Jorrvaskr. Farkas let the elk fall to the ground in a dusty heap in the training grounds of Jorrvaskr.

'I shot it,' he said proudly.

'Aren't you a wonderful hunter,' Vilkas teased, placing his book on the table and walking up to us to inspect the elk. He smiled to himself as he inspected the kill and nodded in approval.

'Pretty good for a first kill,' I said.

'Not bad. Now get rid of it before it starts to rot and makes the whole place smell as bad as you do,' Vilkas called as he walked back to the chair he was residing in.

I arrived in Winterhold with Farkas and Vilkas with my robes from the Vigilant hugging my cold skin. Farkas and Vilkas were Nords so they were used to the cold Skryim weather and they only wore their usual attire, their armour. People stared as we approached the College bridge and Farkas and Vilkas began to tense. Typical Nords.

'I think I'm okay from here,' I said, turning to the twins.

'Are you sure you don't want Farkas to tuck you into bed?' Vilkas teased with a smirk. Farkas darted him an unfriendly glare before looking at me.

'I have some gold to give you. In case you need something,' Farkas said, pulling out a coin purse from his belt. 'You have to take it.' He sounded like he was ordering me to take his money.

'I'll pay you back in ale,' I promised, accepting the pouch and placing it on my belt.

'I guess we'll see you later, whelp,' Vilkas said with a small attempt at a smile.

'I'll see you soon,' I nodded.

'If you're not back in a month, Aela and me are gonna…uh…bring you back,' Farkas warned. I chuckled lightly and nodded my head "yes". I gave him a hug and Vilkas nodded his head at me as a farewell before turning away.

'Don't forget to write,' Farkas said.

'Me? Please, ice-brain, you better not forget to write. I left some paper and a quill and some ink in your room by your bed so you better not forget!' My best friend smiled at me and turned to return to his duties. He glanced back over his shoulder and I waved. He walked down Winterhold with his brother and left the small village.

I wiped the sweat from my hands nervously into my robes and walked up the steps to the bridge. Only now, on my own, did I realize how horridly bleak this place was. Snow, wind and nothing but white, grey and black.

'Can I help you?' asked a proper voice. An Altmer woman stood out from the grey shadows on the bridge.

'Yes, I wish to join the College,' I said nervously.

'Do you now? What is it you seek here?'

'I wish to learn to control my ability.'

'I see. Well, if you can prove your ability then I can escort you inside,' she told me. She was kind for an Altmer. 'If you could kindly cast a firebolt spell please.' I gulped and held up my hand. She stood aside and I shut my eyes in hope that it would happen and not set her alight. But nothing happened.

Shit.

'When you're ready,' she prompted.

I jolted my hand forward and a single blast of fire shot out and hit the snow and stone. I surprised myself and smiled in glee at my success.

'Follow me,' she said simply, leading me up the bridge. 'I'm Faralda. I teach Destruction magic in the College. But Mirabelle is who you will want to speak with. She's probably in the courtyard reading again. What did you say your name was?'

'I'm Luna,' I said nervously. She led me up the bridge, explaining that it was destroyed in the "Great Collapse". I wondered why they never repaired it as I walked uneasily across a part of the bridge that had almost nothing left of it.

'What brings you here with two Nords?' she asked.

'Oh, they're my friends. I was in Whiterun,' I explained.

'And they accept the College?'

'Not quite. They're not too fond of magic,' I said.

'Typical Nords,' she said, putting her nose in the air as she walked. As we walked into the courtyard of the College I saw a magnificent blue glow coming from the centre of the courtyard with a huge statue of a wizard with his cloak blowing backwards in the wind. He was lightly coated with snow and ice, but he was still powerful and mighty looking. A huge tower stood before me with a glass window at the very top with an eye shape in the centre and an inverted star shape around it. I guessed it was a symbol of the college because it seemed to stand out against the grey of the bleak building.

'Mirabelle is over here,' Faralda said as she led me over to a Breton woman who stood reading through a spell book. We stood before her and she looked up from her book and closed it shut in one hand.

'And who might you be?' she asked.

'This is Luna, she wishes to join the College,' Faralda said.

'Is that so? Well I suppose we have a free bed and we could always do with some new faces around here,' the Breton said, raising her eyebrows at me. 'I'll show you around and have someone leave some robes and a hood on your bed for you. You don't have to wear them but they are useful to those who want to use magic.'

'Thank you,' I said quietly. Faralda left without a word and Mirabelle showed me the dorms and showed me to a room and told me it was mine. There was a well type structure in the centre with a blast of blue light going up to the ceiling. It was mesmerizingly beautiful as it glowed blue like running water and lit up the whole hall. I felt a sudden warmness in my stomach as I saw the room with a cosy looking bed with a green quilt draped over it. The room was warm and there was no trace of the cold outside.

I left my small rucksack by my bag. It only contained a dagger from Farkas and some rolls of paper with a quill and three pots of ink and a few sticks of charcoal. I had eaten the apple from it on the trip to Winterhold.

'I believe Tolfdir is giving a lecture in the Hall of the Elements at the minute. Perhaps you would like to attend given it would be your classmates attending it now. Or you can get settled in and attend tomorrow,' she said. I told her I would like to attend now and she showed me to the hall.

A Dunmer girl, a Nord man and a male Khajiit stood around listening to the teacher. I smiled to myself at the observation of the students. A Dunmer, a Nord and a Khajiit… It sounded like the beginning to a bad joke. I walked up to my classmates and silently joined the group and began listening in.

'Magic is a very powerful thing and first you must learn to control it. It can be very dangerous!' he insisted. 'Ah! Come and join! Don't be afraid!' He welcomed me into the group and I stood shyly between the Dunmer and the Khajiit. He rambled about how magic was very dangerous for a few minutes and how it could be used as a weapon against us. He continued to explain how ward spells could be used to defend ourselves.

'Wards are very useful and they are very simple to cast,' he said. He talked more about wards before my classmates tired of his ramblings and insisted on us doing something practical in the class.

'And what do you think?' he asked, looking at me. I looked around in a panic and then shyly looked to him.

'I don't know. I think magic is dangerous if you can't control it…,' I said quietly. I looked up and saw three very unhappy students sending me glares. 'But I guess… it would be fun to do something practical?' They all looked to Tolfdir.

'Very well, we will practice a ward spell,' he said. He asked the Dunmer girl to hold up a ward spell while he sent a spell at her. She proudly held up a lesser ward and he sent purple sparks like lightening towards her but she was left unharmed as her ward protected her from the unfriendly spell.

'Very good!' he said happily, 'Is everyone familiar with wards? Do you all know a ward spell?' I raised my hand shyly and shook my head.

'I don't…sir,' I said nervously. The Khajiit snickered at my lack of knowledge and I felt my cheeks flush red. I had a pale complexion as it was and I was paler from the cold so the pinkness on my cheeks was highly visible and this made me even more embarrassed and I felt my whole face grow hotter.

'Not to worry! I have it in a book,' he said, picking up a tattered old book from the steps in the Hall and handing it to me.

'Thank you,' I said, holding the book to my chest and keeping my head down.

'Not to worry. Now, everyone get some rest tonight and we will all meet here tomorrow for a trip to Saarthal for an expedition!' he exclaimed happily. I wondered what Saarthal was and why we were going there, but right now that was fading from my mind. I hurried up to Tolfdir as the other three left together.

'Sir, I was wondering if I could ask you something,' I said.

'Of course, my dear, what is it? Are you finding the class okay?' he asked.

'Yes sir. I was just wondering if you had any information on lycanthropy. I'm new here and I was hoping to do some research on different things,' I explained.

'Lycanthropy?!' he exclaimed.

'Yes sir.'

'Well, you can try in the Arcanaeum, I'm sure if we have anything on Lycanthropy in the College it would be in there. Urag may be able to help you find something,' he said. 'Just don't damage any of his books! He takes his job very seriously and he wouldn't be too pleased with you if you did any damage to a book in his library.'

'Thank you,' I said with a smile.

'What an exciting question on your first day,' Tolfdir commented.

'I'm sorry if that was too forward. I was just hoping to get started on some research,' I explained.

'Not at all! The sooner research begins the better! It's wonderful to see such a young mind so eager to learn and begin studies,' he said with a kind smile.

I returned to the living quarters in the College, the Hall of Attainment. It wasn't nearly as homely as the living quarters in Jorrvaskr, but it was nicer than sleeping in the snow outside. It was warm with a comfortable bed and plenty of space, and the best part was it had no arrogant Nord telling me I was a "lady of the night" to put it nicely.

I decided I would visit the library tomorrow after the expedition in Saarthal and I would get started on the Lycanthropy research then. I wanted to get it started as quickly as possible to help Farkas. I took off my clothes and cuddled into my own warm bed and for a second I thought I was home…


	8. Letters To Whiterun

_Dear Farkas,_

_I have been settling in quite well to the College. We went on an expedition to Saarthal, a place covered in snow and ice. It was an old Nordic ruin of some sort. We found something very strange and I am worried there is more to it than what seems to be there. I stumbled into some part of the site that was not yet discovered and a member of the Psijic Order appeared to me in a vision. They are an ancient order of magic-wielding folk. It was very strange. There were monstrous creatures under Saarthal. I had never seen a Draugr before, and now that I have I never want to see another one again._

_I have collected a book on physicality's of werewolves. I don't like this book because it uses the wolves as live experiments. I wonder does it physically pain you when you transform? Wolfsbane is mentioned, but it is incredibly rare and is only found in Solstheim. A friend at the College says that there is a Dunmer wizard in Solstheim that I may be able to contact for Wolfsbane. I will continue as much research as I can and then try to create a draft._

_Send Vilkas and Aela my best; I hope to hear from you soon,_

_Luna_

I sealed my letter with wax from a burning candle on my dresser and I left the dormitories to go to the town to find the courier. I had gold in my purse on my belt, but I feared I wouldn't have enough. The snow was heavy outside and the cold began to hurt my skin. I pulled my hood up over my head to keep my ears warm.

The steps down the college to the town were long and I always felt a jolt in my stomach as I walked over the part of the bridge that was almost non-existent. I waddled over the icy parts of the bridge, holding onto the wall for dear life with my hands covered with my warm gloves.

As I walked into the town, my feet sinking into the snow a small amount, I saw that there was no one around. It was early hours of the morning, but the courier was sure to be around. Apparently he was usually found in the inn of Winterhold. I opened the door and snow followed me inside and quickly began to melt on the floor. I saw a man sitting at one of the tables in the inn with an odd hat and a belt with satchels all around it.

'Excuse me,' I asked nervously. The man looked around at me.

'Yes?'

'Are you the courier?' I asked. He nodded once and I began to relax. 'I wondered if you could deliver this letter for me please?'

'Of course. And who would I be delivering this to?' he asked.

'To Farkas of the Companions in Whiterun,' I said. I had practised this line over and over so I sounded professional, as if I had business with the Companions.

'In Jorrvaskr?' he asked. I nodded and smiled. 'That's twenty Septims.' I pulled coins from my purse and handed them over to him along with the letter. He put the coins in one pouch and my letter to Farkas in the other. I nodded to him before heading back to the College.

As I stepped outside into the town again I saw people were awakening. As I passed two Nords I heard them muttering about how they were sick of the College and the mages and how Saarthal should have been left alone. I kept my head down and hurried back up to the College.

Urag sat at his desk, overrun with books and documents and pieces of parchment. The Arcanaeum had such a pleasant scent of books and fresh parchment and ink. Urag looked up at me briefly before shaking his head.

'I don't have any documents on a connection between Saarthal and the Psijic order.'

'Oh,' I said quietly.

'Not anymore anyway. Orthorn stole a number of books when he ran off to Fellglow Keep to join those Summoners,' Urag spat. 'Some kind of a peace offering.' He rolled his eyes.

'And he had books with this information?'

'I believe so. If you want them you'll have to go and get them from him.' He stood up and left with a pile of books in his hands. He then began carefully sorting them into shelves.

'Thanks Urag,' I said, taking my leave from the Arcanaeum. That was a lot less information that I had expected to retrieve from the Arcanaeum. I turned the corner from the Arcanaeum and I jumped back in surprise as a tall figure stood in front of me.

'You there!' he demanded. He was a High Elf with white hair that slicked back on his head. 'I have questions for you. You were in Saarthal, yes? Well it has come to my attention that something was found there.'

'Perhaps,' I replied, looking at him cautiously.

'I am well aware that you have. Tolfdir is still in Saarthal, is he? I expect a full report from him when he returns.'

'What concern of this is yours?' I asked, a little taken aback by his swift demands.

'Something was discovered in Saarthal that was significant enough that Tolfdir sent a new member of the College, alone, to deliver the word… That sounds precisely like the sort of matter that should concern everyone. Especially me. You may go now.' He ushered me out of his way and I stared at him as he left. He was neither a student nor a teacher at the College and he had no business being here that I knew of.

I returned to my dorm where I pulled out a map that Tolfdir had given me, shocked to hear that I had not owned one previously. I guessed a map was of use to me after all. I looked at where Winterhold was marked off and I scanned it with my finger for Fellglow Keep. I spotted it in small print, a little North of Whiterun. That was helpful.

I feared what I would find at that Keep though. I wondered should I ask someone to come with me or should I go alone. No, definitely not alone. Farkas and Vilkas perhaps?

Three days passed and my studies on Werewolves was going well, but my studies on curing them was not. Had I just promised Farkas the impossible? A courier arrived at the College with a letter for me and I feared I would have to reply with a letter telling Farkas how horrible this study for a cure was going.

The courier handed me a letter and a parcel, wrapped in brown wrappings that were poorly tied together. The parcel was a little heavy to my surprised and I wondered what exactly Farkas had sent me. I returned to my dormitory and sat on the bed and opened my letter.

_Dear Luna,_

_I am glad the colege is good. Vilkas has a book for wolfs. I will ask him to let me send it for you. When we turn the chest hurts and legs hurt._

_I have used the bow like you showed me. Vilkas says I am getting good. Vilkas and Aela say hello, Kodlak hope you are good. Hope you stay warm in the snow._

_-Farkas._

I set down the letter and opened the parcel that he left me and saw it was a book entitled "Lycanthropic Legends of Skyrim". I smiled to myself and hugged the book close to my chest. It was the same book I had found in Vilkas' room before. I could smell Jorrvaskr from the pages of the book as I flicked through it. It was the scent of wet dog and it was kind of sickening but it was familiar and I liked it.


	9. Word From Solstheim

'Who is Ulfric Stormcloak?' I asked. Brelyna looked at me and frowned.

'He's the Jarl of Windhelm. The leader of the Stormcloak rebellion. He says he's all for making Skyrim a free country because it's home to the Nords. But he completely disregards the fact that Skyrim isn't just home to Nords. A racist if you ask me, but I guess his goal to make his people happy,' she explained.

'But, would his people not include every race that lives in Skyrim?'

'It should. The Dunmer in Windhelm live in slums and Ulfric doesn't care that the Nords treat them like rats. Argonians aren't even allowed in the city walls. There's constant trouble with people attacking the Khajiit caravans and it's getting worse. Ulfric claims he's the true High King, but what kind of King allows his people to be slaughtered just because they are not his race?'

'Do you think he should be?'

'I don't know where I stand on this war. Ulfric will do nothing to help any of us, I guess the Empire would, but then Talos would be outlawed and that's not particularly fair on the Nords…'

'Have you ever met him?'

'Ulfric?' she scoffed, 'No. I think I'd turn him into something rather horrid if I ever did meet him.' I smiled at her and she giggled a little.

'I met him once. I was in Helgen when the dragon attacked,' I said.

'You saw the dragon?!' she exclaimed.

'Yeah. It was huge,' I said quickly, 'but when I met Ulfric, they had his mouth shut with a gag. What was that about?'

'He studied with the Greybeards when he was a boy. He's able to use the Voice.'

'What does that mean?'

'He can shout. Like dragons. He learned to speak the dragon language. That's how he killed the High King. He shouted him to death apparently,' she said.

'And here I was thinking it was because he'd say something stupid,' I muttered.

'What do you mean?' she smirked.

'Well he was a little irritating when he did speak, after we escaped,' I said. 'Legends don't burn down villages,' I said lowering my voice in an attempt to sound as grumpy and sinister as Ulfric had tried. Brelyna giggled and smiled at me.

'Going by Nord tradition he didn't really murder the High King. He challenged him and won,' I said, 'But if he knew he won, why did he run away? Surely he must have been guilty of something then.'

'Maybe he knew he was going to get arrested after killing the King?' Brelyna suggested.

'I thought of that. But if he truly believed he owned the throne after that, he should have stayed and dealt with the consequence. I think a true King would have went to prison to prove a point instead of running off and leading more and more men into war.'

'I think you're looking too far into this. Maybe politics is your thing,' Brelyna said with a smirk.

'I don't really like large crowds of people.'

_Dear Farkas,_

_I will send the book back to you for Vilkas when I have taken notes on the information. Thank you for sending it to me. Research has been slow since the Wolfsbane discovery. Vampirism is easier to cure, why couldn't you have been a vampire?_

_I wrote to the Dunmer on Solstheim, I hope for a reply soon. When I return to Whiterun I expect you to catch me a meal, keep working with the bow. I have not been practicing with a sword, but I have the dagger you left me and I am able to cast a ward and I can now control my magic!_

_I hope you are doing well. I quite miss Jorrvaskr and the Companions. Send my love to your brother and to you._

_-Luna_

I sent it away with the courier and immediately began taking notes on Vilkas' book. I wasn't sure what kind of information I would get from the book, or whether it would be useful at all. So far all I have is a lot of studies on werewolves but no study on cures. There's some rituals mentioned in the research, but I don't think they're of use to what I'm searching for.

I lay in my bed, rattling my brains against my skull trying to think of more to do for this. I was still awaiting word back from Solstheim from the Dunmer. I hoped he wouldn't ignore my message. I couldn't do much else for my work in the College until I figured out how to get those books back for Urag. So I lay in bed in my clothes thinking of what to do to occupy myself.

I missed home less and less every day. I was growing too fond of looking out at the snow of Skyrim and calling it home. I had nothing left in Cyrodiil for me. (Besides a few spare changes of clothes and a couple of bows and homemade arrows)

I had five gold left from the purse Farkas had given me. I had all the food I needed in the College, but I would need to get more gold if I wanted to send another letter to Whiterun… I had no money to do anything, I had no resources to do any more research and it was too early to go to bed.

I heaved myself up from the bed, grabbed my dagger from my locker, stuffed it in my belt and made my way down to the town of Winterhold. The cold was sudden and I was picking up my pace by the second to hurry to Birna's store. I was holding onto the wall of the bridge the whole way down to the town, for fear I would slip on some ice. I rushed into the store and kicked the snow off my boots and pushed it outside.

'Hi,' I said nervously, 'I'm looking for a bow.'

'A bow?' Birna asked, raising her eyebrows at me.

'And some arrows.'

'You'll be lucky if I find one,' she said.

'But the thing is I was wondering if I could trade it for a dagger,' I said, biting my lip in hope.

'A dagger?' she said, placing her hands on her hips.

'It's from Whiterun.' I placed the dagger on the counter and looked up at her.

'It's from the Skyforge,' she said, picking it up. 'How did you get this?'

'My friend is a Companion.'

'And you would give away a Skyforge dagger for a simple bow, if I even have one?' She looked at me oddly and I paused and pursed my lips together. I had no idea the dagger was from the Skyforge. To be perfectly ignorant, I was pretty sure it was just a steel dagger.

'Can you hunt?'

'Yes.'

'Tell you what then, if I find you a bow and some arrows you can have it and keep your dagger. You can catch some game and give it to me. Things have been hard around here lately.'

'Deal,' I said with a nod.

She began digging around behind the counter and all around the shop while I stood idly by at the fire, keeping my bottom warm. Eventually she pulled out a hunting bow. It was similar to what I had at home, only mine was engraved with designs and symbols.

'I trust you won't forget, I'd hate to have to tell the guards to take this back from you,' she said, holding it back from my reach.

'I won't forget, don't worry,' I said. She handed me the bow and a quiver with a few iron arrows.

I lay on my stomach, crouched in the snow, my back lightly draped in a fresh blanket of snow as it fell. My bow was drawn, my arrow held back in place and my eyes fixed upon a grey rabbit who was wandering around in the snow. I held my breath and calmed myself, time seemed to slow down and I could see everything that moved so much clearer. I released and watched as the iron arrow instantly killed the rabbit.

I took a glance around me and picked up the rabbit and removed my arrow from it. I wiped off the blood from the bow in my robes and held the rabbit up by its two back legs. Thanking the Divines I headed back down the road to Winterhold. I didn't stray too far, especially after what happened the last time I went off on my own up North in Skyrim. Not to mention the fact of how I ended up in Skyrim…

The guards watched me as I walked past, probably wondering why someone in mage robes was carrying a dead rabbit and a bow. I guessed the Nords were just weary of magic folk.

I walked back into Birna's store and placed the rabbit on the counter. Birna looked at me in surprise, with wide eyes and mouth agape.

'I expected you to take longer than that,' she said shaking her head.

'I used to hunt for a living,' I said.

'Well if you ever decide to start hunting again I can't see how that wouldn't help the people. You could sell your game to the townspeople. Fresh meat is hard to come by around here. You could make a fair amount of coin too,' she said.

'I guess I could,' I said with a shrug of my shoulders.

I left and made my way back up to the College with my bow on my back with my quiver.

_Dear Luna,_

_I have caught a rabbit. But I cannot cook. Vilkas has many books you can read when you come back. I am not a vampire; I thought you knew I was not._

_I am glad you can cast ward. I think Vilkas knows magic. I saw his books, he had a spell book on his shelf. I have not told him I know, I think he will be mad._

_I will be going to Windhelm in three days for something. I can meet you in Winterhold after. Will you be coming back to Whiterun then?_

_Love from Aela and Vilkas and other Companions and me._

_-Farkas_

I smiled at the letter and put it in my bedside drawer with the other letter, my notes and Vilkas' book. Those three days could not pass quick enough, and I knew I would need something to occupy myself to try and make time go past.

A few hours passed of me reading books about destruction magic that I borrowed from multiple people. I was bored, but I had learned quite a large amount about destruction magic. With a little bit of practice I think I could also master a few new spells.

After the long hours of reading about spells I decided to take a break and go outside and see them working. As I left the dorms I saw that sneaky elf Ancano lurking around, probably spying on any mage he could find around the place. Brelyna had told me that he had just shown up when the Dominion decided they wanted knowledge from the College. Apparently no one wanted him around here and I understood why after our encounter.

I stood in the courtyard and began muttering incantations to myself, trying to muster all my power up to get these spells to work. So far nothing was happening and I was getting flustered and frustrated. I turned my head as a shadowy figure passed by but the second I looked I didn't see anything.

I tried again and this time I mustered some icy power from my hands. I smiled to myself and tried again and again, each time getting more and more powerful. I mustered the power between both of my hands and shot it against a pillar, throwing myself backwards from the sheer force.

'Whoa,' I said to myself. I brushed the snow off my robes and looked around. The courtyard was empty, so I tried again and dug my heels into the ground to stop myself from falling backwards again.

I could feel the cold running through my veins in a burning rush. The release was so satisfying and it sent me into a wonderful adrenaline. The frost covered the pillars of the College and the ground around me. I lowered my hands and panted heavily. I raised my hands again and cast balls of fire all around me that melted the ice on the ground and the frost piles all along the pillars.

'Ahem.' I turned and lowered my hands. The courier stood near me, holding a piece of parchment in his hand. He looked at me with a concerned frown and hesitantly handed me the letter. 'It's from Solstheim.'

'Thank you,' I said. He turned and hurried out of the College grounds, throwing glances over his shoulder. I opened the letter and read it to myself.

It was from Neloth, the Dunmer wizard in Solstheim. Finally he had replied. He told me that he would help me with my research if in return I would send him ingredients from Skyrim. He required quite a few and if it were any other time I would have ignored his requests, but I really needed this Wolfsbane.

I returned to my dorm and sat on the bed and read the letter from Neloth again.

_I will help you in your research but nothing is free in Tamriel so I will require a payment of some ingredients that are available in Skyrim. These would be Chaurus eggs, Luna Moth Wings, Taproot, two Briar Hearts, and if possible Jarrin Root._

_If you wish you can send them over, but I would request that you travel over here to give them to me and to receive what you desire. Sending things by courier can be tricky as they tend to run off with many a rare treasure._

_-Neloth of House Telvanni_

_P.S. Bring Soul Gems and Canis Root_

I didn't know where to get any of these things. I had never even heard of a Jarrin Root. So I wrote a letter.

_Dear Farkas,_

_I will return to Whiterun with you for a few days. I must ask you to help me with something. I will explain when I see you in person. I will also bring my research so far to show you. I wonder if you could ask Vilkas could I ask him about lycanthropy when I am home? It would help with the research I think._

_The Dunmer in Solstheim says he can send me some Wolfsbane if I can send him some things. I think they should be easy to find if I can talk to an alchemist. But there is one that I have never heard of on the list._

_If you could catch any Luna Moths, that would be wonderful. Also if you come across any Chaurus eggs, taproot, Briar hearts, soul gems and canis root, could you keep them for me? He also asked for Jarrin Root if possible. I've never even heard of this, so don't worry about it for now._

_I cannot wait to see you!_

_-Luna_


	10. Rumors

'Are you leaving?'

I turned and saw Brelyna standing at my door, a concerned look on her face.

'Just for a few days. I have to get some things for some research and possibly get my head chopped off in the process,' I said with a smile. I put the book from Vilkas in my knapsack and tucked in a few notes on some spells I wanted to practice.

'Hey, you wouldn't know anything about alchemy ingredients?'

'A little I guess, just basic ones, why?' she replied.

'I'm looking for a Jarrin Root. I've never even heard of it,' I told her.

'Jarrin Root? I've heard of it. It's from Stros M'Kai. It's really powerful. That's all I know. I guess if you know the right people you could get it.' Brelyna shrugged and we both looked at each other with confused faces.

'So where are you headed?' she asked.

'Whiterun. I have friends there,' I told her.

'Whiterun is beautiful,' she said with a smile.

'You can come along if you'd like?'

'Oh no, I have so much research to do here. Perhaps the next time,' she said with a smile. 'Actually, I wonder when you return could you help me out with something I've been working on. I think I almost have it right. I imagine by the time you return I should have it right.'

'Of course. I'd love to help you out,' I said.

'Excellent!'

'I had better get going. I'll see you in a few days Brelyna!'

'Stay safe.'

I hurried out of the College with my knapsack and my arrows and bow. I pulled up my hood and continued down the bridge to Winterhold where I saw Farkas standing at the beginning of the bridge, eyeing up the College.

'So this is where you disappeared to.' I turned and saw Njada with a disgusted frown on her face. She was leaning against the bridge of the College.

'Nice to see you too Njada,' I said, trying to mask the sourness in my voice. I looked up at Farkas and smiled.

'I don't remember it being that far away,' Farkas said.

'What? The College?'

'Yes.'

'It's not really.'

'Should we leave?'

'Ugh, thank Talos,' Njada said, marching off, trying to warm herself in the process.

'Actually, I was wondering would you know where I could get Jarrin Root? I don't want to go the whole way to Whiterun only to find out we passed the place on the way,' I said.

'What's that?' asked Farkas. Njada turned around and looked at me.

'Try an alchemist,' she said poisonously.

'I would, only it's rare and I don't think they'd sell it.'

'Sounds like you should head to Riften then,' Njada scoffed at me. I frowned.

'Why's that?'

'Because they'd sell you anything down there.' She turned and walked ahead.

Before us on the road stood a man in very odd attire with a cart and a large box on the cart. He was pacing around, bouncing high on his heels. Farkas began to tense up and pick up his pace a little. Njada began to slow down, allowing us to catch up to her.

Njada looked at Farkas and he nodded at her to continue walking. The man spoke with a high pitched voice. He wore a jester suit, hat and all. I noted that one of the wheels on his cart was broken off. He turned to look at us with maddened eyes as we approached.

'Agh! Bother and befuddle! Stuck here! Stuck!' he exclaimed. We stopped in front of him. 'My mother, my poor mother. Unmoving. At rest…but too still!'

'Are you okay, Sir?' I asked, leaning forward. Farkas and Njada looked at me angrily. I guessed they were thought not to talk to strangers.

'Poor Cicero is stuck! Can't you see?' he said in a panic. He was mad, definitely mad. 'I was transporting my dear, sweet mother. Well, not her. Her corpse! She's quite dead…' He giggled manically at the end. 'I'm taking mother to a new home. A new crypt. But…Agh! Wagon wheel! Damnedest wagon wheel! It broke! Don't you see?!' He growled low in his high voice.

'Can I help you fix the wheel?' I offered. Njada and Farkas both tensed and looked at me again.

'No, we have to go,' Njada insisted.

'OH! Oh yes! Yes, the kindly stranger can certainly help!' he began jumping and dancing with glee at my response. He seemed to completely ignore Njada, just as I did. His face lit up and he gave a scary smile, his eyes glowing with madness. 'Go to the farm –The Loreius Farm. Just over there, off the road. Talk to Loreius. He has tools! He can help me! But he won't! He refuses! Convince Lareius to fix my wheel! Do that and poor Cicero will reward you. With coin! Shiny, shiny coin!' His sudden change of spirit throughout his conversation was a little disturbing to me, but nonetheless I would help him.

I walked up to the farm, leaving Njada and Farkas to stand with Cicero. 'Just stay here,' I told them quietly. I hurried up to the farm and saw a man digging in the field.

'Excuse me,' I said.

'Oh, for the love of Mara, what now?' he snapped.

'Are you Loreius?' I asked.

'Yes,' he snapped.

'The, um, little man, Cicero, he really needs your help. With his wagon?' I said awkwardly.

'Not him again. Tell me something I don't know. Crazy fool's already asked me about five times. Seems like he's not satisfied with my answer. Why can't he just leave us alone?'

'So what's the problem? I'm sure he'll pay you if you just help him out.'

'Pay me?! You think this is about money?! Have you seen the man? He's completely out of his head! A jester? Here in Skyrim? Ain't been a merryman in these parts of a hundred years. And he's transporting some giant box. Says it's a coffin and he's going to bury his mother. Mother my eye,' he spat at me venomously. 'He could have anything in there! War contraband, weapons, skooma. Ain't no way I'm getting involved in any of that.' He crossed his arms over his chest.

'He's a stranger who needs assistance. Please do the right thing,' I pleaded.

'What! And just who in Mara's name are you anyway? Hm? Come here, telling me my business. And for what? To help a…a…a fool!'

'You know you should help him,' I said sternly. He sighed.

'You're right. You're right. Feller might be nutters, might not. But fact is, he needs help. I turn him away, what kind of man am I, hm? Look, um… Thanks. And I'm sorry for my unneighbourly reaction. If you talk to Cicero, be sure to tell him I'll be down to help soon.' I nodded and thanked him and returned down the hill to Njada, Farkas and Cicero.

'Poor mother! Her new home seems so very far!' he cried.

'Um, Cicero? I talked to Loreius. He said he will help you fix the wagon wheel,' I told him.

'You… you did? He has?! OH! Stranger! You have made Cicero so happy! So jubilant and ecstatic! But more! Even more! My mother thanks you! Here, here! For your troubles!' He pulled a large coin purse out of his pocket, and as he did so Njada and Farkas both went to grab their weapons but seized when they saw it was only gold. Cicero stuffed it into my hands and I smiled at him.

'Shiny, clinky gold! A few coins for a kind deed! And thank you! Oh! Thank you again!' I bade him farewell and we continued on our road to Whiterun.

'Are you insane?' Njada snapped at me once we were out of earshot from Cicero. Although I doubt he would have noticed because he was rambling to himself and to the coffin on the wagon.

'No, but I wanted to help him,' I said.

'You could have gotten us killed!' she growled.

'Njada! Leave it!' Farkas ordered.

'You're not going to take her side in this are you?!' she hissed.

'No, I'm just telling you to shut up,' he growled at her. She turned and marched on toward Whiterun, storming off ahead of us. Farkas looked at me with a disapproving look.

'Oh come on,' I said.

'You should know not to talk to strangers.'

'Farkas he was in trouble. What if there were no kind strangers to help me when I was stuck at the side of a road? What if they had just left me there and carried on with their own business? Where would I be now? I know he probably wouldn't have ended up dead like I would have, but I wanted to help him. Who knows what the guards would have done to him, had Loreius reported him for something he mightn't have even done?'

'Alright, alright,' Farkas said.

'Besides, he's harmless,' I said.

We walked through the gates of Whiterun and I caught the smell of the blacksmiths just inside the gates. As we proceeded the scent of freshly baked bread grew stronger and stronger as the market grew nearer and nearer. The voices of the people in the market place and the laughter of the children as they ran around the city, it was such a comfort to be in such a lively place. I enjoyed Winterhold, but it was so dark and gloomy as if the end was coming to swallow the city up.

'So you need to get all of these things for the Elf in Solstheim?'

'Pretty much,' I explained, 'I also need to get to Fellglow Keep to get some books back.'

'What?'

'Some guy took some books from the College and they're very important right now. They could explain something about what we found. He ran off with them when he left and he's in Fellglow Keep at the minute apparently. I need to get them back. I was hoping you'd help me out.'

'Well I'd hardly let you go by yourself now would I?'

'I want to ask the alchemist about some of the things for Neloth. I'll meet you in Jorrvaskr,' I told him. He nodded and left the marketplace. I entered the alchemy store on my right and closed the door behind me.

'Welcome to Arcadia's Cauldron,' the woman behind the counter said.

'Hi,' I said nervously. I walked up to the counter. 'I'm looking for some things. I was hoping you could help me out. I won't be able to buy them today but I was wondering if you had any of them.'

'Of course, what are you looking for?' I noted that she was an Imperial and she looked aged, but judging by the sound of her voice she wasn't as old as she looked.

'Chaurus eggs,' I began, 'Luna Moth Wings, Taproot, Briar hearts –two if possible, Canis root, Soul Gems and I was wondering if you had ever heard of Jarrin Root?'

'Well, I have Chaurus eggs, I don't have any moth wings but you can catch them yourself if you'd like. I have some Taproot hidden around here somewhere, I have plenty of Canis root. I don't have any Soul Gems or Briar Hearts, but I think Belethor has some Soul Gems. If you're brave enough to go hunting Forsworn you might catch a Briar Heart. I thought I heard you say Jarrin Root too?'

'Yes, I was wondering if you could tell me about it,' I pondered.

'Well I don't know a lot about it. You can't grow it here and I've never encountered it. I understand if you know the right people in Riften you might be able to get some imported for you,' she said.

'Who exactly are 'the right people' and how can I get in contact with them?'

'In Riften, there's a Nordic woman. She's head of the Thieves Guild apparently and she has ties with the Dark Brotherhood. Word has it that if you're daring enough and impress her, she'll get you anything you want,' Arcadia told me.

'What's her name?'

'Her name is Mithra and you heard none of this from me. I don't want to be branded with spreading rumours. Besides, they're just rumours. I doubt she even exists, probably just a diversion to hide the real leader of the Guild.'

'Thank you. I'll be back soon to get some of those ingredients from you,' I said.

'Do come back,' she said with a smile.

I left the store and walked up to Jorrvaskr, feeling quite at home as I saw the building. I pushed through the doors and felt the warm glow hit my face. The heat of the fire and the delicious smell of bread and meat and the sweet smell of mead and wine, it was just perfect to me. Farkas sat with Vilkas and Ria at the dining table, huddled together talking about something. They all hushed up as I approached, and I wondered what was going on. Vilkas gave me a strange look before welcoming me back.

'Nice to see you again,' he said in his same dry tone.

'Nice to see you too Vilkas,' I said with a short smile. I nodded at Ria and smiled and she did the same in return.

'Did you find what you're looking for?' Farkas asked.

'I know where to get some of the stuff. The alchemist, Arcadia, she told me there's someone in Riften who can help me out with the Jarrin Root. She's head of the Thieves Guild,' I said. Vilkas choked on his drink and began coughing and spluttering. He looked up at me and blinked largely at me.

'I hope I misheard you there, what did you say she was head of?'

'Thieves Guild,' I repeated.

'You're not to go looking for the Thieves Guild, especially not in Riften. I thought you needed your hands for doing magic,' he said.

'What do you mean?'

'If you go looking for the Thieves Guild, you're asking for trouble. If you go asking for trouble in Riften, by the Gods, they'll give it to you. I don't think the guards will hesitate to cut off your hands if someone asks them to do it.' Vilkas glared at me while Farkas looked from Vilkas to me and back again.

'You're not to go asking about any of these guilds again,' Vilkas warned, 'Not around here,' he muttered before taking leave from the table. Ria looked away from me and took leave as well, walking out the back door, probably to train in the yard.

'Farkas, I need these ingredients,' I said quietly as Vilkas disappeared from earshot.

'Luna, the head of the Thieves Guild has ties with the Dark Brotherhood. You don't go getting involved in those,' he said.

'Farkas, this is really important. It could be my only way of getting help from Neloth.'

'Who?'

'The Dunmer in Solstheim.'

'Oh.'

'Farkas, I will be going to Riften for help,' I warned.

'At least wait a while. Stay here for a few days and then get the other things and then we'll talk about Riften.'

'Why can't we talk about Riften now?'

'I'll tell you tonight,' he said and brushed me off. I let out a heavy sigh and shook it off. I was, least to say, annoyed at their responses. I wondered if I explained to Vilkas why I would need these ingredients from this person in these associations, would he tell me and would he help?

'So what do we do now?'

'Tell me about the research you have so far,' he asked, pulling mountains of meat onto his plate.

'Do you really want to be bored with my notes?' He nodded at me and I smiled. I took my notes from my bag and spread them across what little of the table I inhabited.

'Okay, firstly I wanted to understand what exactly the whole thing is. It's a disease and obviously you know the effects. It was created by Hircine and that's why when a werewolf dies they go to hunt with Hircine for eternity. Sort of like paradise for those who actually like the, uh, illness for lack of a better word,' I explained awkwardly. 'There's also theories that if you contract vampirism that basically destroys the Lycanthropy. But that's extremely hard because werewolves are immune to contracting diseases. But there was one case that I was reading about, someone in Hammerfell was kidnapped by vampires and he was used for blood. At the time he was a werewolf and he fought back against the vampires, but they all attacked him and basically jumped on him and bit him. I guess trying to feed on him. He got away, but apparently he lost the werewolf ability and turned into a vampire. Whether or not he rid himself of lycanthropy or just silenced it is still unknown for definite.

'But this made me wonder about what lycanthropy actually is and what it really affects. Vampirism that you catch by being bitten is involved with the blood. It infects your blood and eventually reaches your heart, that can take up to three or four days, depending on your time zone,' I said with a chuckle, looking up at Farkas who had his face stuffed with a little bit of everything. He stared at me and I put my head down and continued.

'Because vampirism is got to do with your blood and it basically stops your heart from beating, but doesn't kill you, I was wondering why that might stop lycanthropy, if you were to believe that the Redguard man was cured when he contracted vampirism. So, keeping this in mind, I also discovered from that horrible book by Reman Crex, that the heart swells and gets larger when a werewolf transforms. So vampirism and lycanthropy are quite opposites. Vampirism makes you an undead, while lycanthropy makes you larger than life really.' I shuffled through my notes to gather the next few pieces of information.

'Crex also mentions how he applied some known cures to the bones and blood of the werewolf. I presume direct contact with these things don't work very well because she died after he did this. But, I looked into the ingredients that he mentioned; Wolfsbane petals and belladonna berries. I'm more so wondering about the Wolfsbane because I have a potion recipe that I think might be able to help and from reading about the effects of the ingredients I think I can work from it. All I really need is the Wolfsbane. That's why I wrote to Neloth in Solstheim, it grows there, but from what I've heard it's incredibly rare so I don't think I'll be able to just make a trip to Solstheim or Morrowind and find it myself.

'Once I get this I can start making the potion. From what I can tell it will mainly just temporarily stop the transformation, until I can make a permanent potion. I just have some minor notes left on werewolves and about how it began. I can't find much, only that it was made by Hircine. I did want to speak to some werewolves, so if you could help me with that…'

'You want to talk to the Circle,' he stated, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.

'If they'll talk to me. If they have any knowledge that might be of use, or even if they know how this came to be in the Companions. Anything of use,' I said.

'Don't ask Aela and Skjor. They'll be mad that you want to cure it. They think it's some kind of gift. Kodlak says it's a curse. It bothers him because after he dies he'll be with Hircine. He's a Nord, so that's not what he wants when he dies,' he explained to me. I looked up at him and for the first time I noticed how silver his eyes were, how they shone like the moonlight.

'Were your eyes always that silver?' I asked, slightly gaping up at him.

'No. They changed when I turned,' he said dully.

'What colour were they before?'

'I can't remember,' he said. I could hear a drop of sadness in his voice. He looked down slightly and I tilted my head to look at him.

'Don't worry about it,' I smiled. He gave a sad smile and stood up from the table.

'Come on, let's go bother Vilkas,' he said.

'If you're here to talk about Riften, or if you're here to talk, go away,' Vilkas ordered as Farkas and I knocked at his door. Farkas rolled his eyes and opened the door anyway. Vilkas lay back on his bed, immersed in a large book.

'Was I not clear?'

'You were,' Farkas replied, 'but Luna has questions.'

'If this is about the Thieves Guild or anything along those lines, don't bother asking. If this is about your study for a cure, I would like to help but I don't know anything that I would think to be of use to you,' he said plainly.

'I wanted to know if you knew how it came to be in the Companions,' I asked.

'You're better off talking to Kodlak about that,' he said, putting his book down.

'Is that you saying you don't know or that you want us to go away?' I asked.

'Both,' he muttered. He sighed and closed his book, pulling himself to the side of his bed, he sat with his legs over the bed, his feet placed on the floor. He leaned forward a little and indicated the chair across from the bed. I sat down and Farkas nodded at me and left, probably to go sit in his own room. He shut the door on his way out and once the door was shut I pulled out my notes and an ink pot and a quill. I placed the ink pot on the floor beside my foot and dipped the quill into it before looking up at Vilkas.

'Hircine created this curse. From what I know there is a coven of witches that worship him and they know the cure. I'm sure you can ask them what it is, but I get the feeling they won't tell you,' he said.

'Do you know what they're called?'

'Glenmoril witches,' he said, 'they reside everywhere really. Skyrim, Cyrodiil, High Rock. I don't know much else. Kodlak knows more, but don't go bothering the old man about things like this. He's disturbed by this matter recently.'

'Disturbed?'

'Kodlak does not want to hunt with Hircine for eternity when he dies. He wants to go to Sovngarde and see the Hall of Valor. This curse has disrupted his life enough, he would rather not have it follow him in death,' Vilkas explained. He stood up from his bed. 'Why are you doing this? What benefit do you get from this?' I looked up at him and stood up to face him, knocking over my ink pot in the process, but I did not look down, I kept my eyes fixed on his.

'I know you don't care much for me Vilkas, but I care for your brother. He is kind and he wants help and I will do what I can to assist him. I know that you are kind too, and I know you want help with this. I know you don't trust me because I don't belong here, but I wish you would.'

I took my bag and my notes and walked out of the room and shut the door quietly behind me. I took in a deep breath and gathered myself. I hoped Vilkas didn't get mad at what I had said and murder me in my sleep…


End file.
